#Waleed Abdullah News

[rightnewshindi]

क्रिस्टियानो रोनाल्डो धर्म परिवर्तन कर अपनाएंगे इस्लाम? गोलकीपर वलीद अब्दुल्ला ने किया चौंकाने वाला खुलासा

पुर्तगाल के स्टार फुटबॉलर क्रिस्टियानो रोनाल्डो का नाम दुनिया के सबसे बेहतरीन फुटबॉलर्स में शामिल है. क्रिस्टियानो रोनाल्डो अब सऊदी अरब के अल नासर फुटबॉल क्लब के लिए खेलते हैं. उन्होंने साल 2022 में इस टीम के साथ करार किया था. इस क्लब में रोनाल्डो के साथ खेल चुके गोलकीपर वलीद अब्दुल्ला ने चौंकाने वाला खुलासा किया है. वलीद अब्दुल्ला ने रोनाल्डो के इस्लाम धर्म अपनाने की संभावना की ओर इशारा किया…

[world-of-wales]

CONFIRMED ATTENDEES TO THE CORONATION OF

♚♛ KING CHARLES III & QUEEN CAMILLA ♛♚

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♔ ┆ Foreign Royalty

King Felipe & Queen Letizia 🇪🇸

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Crown Prince Sheikh Mishal Al Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah 🇰��

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Emir Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani 🇶🇦

Princess Lalla Meryem 🇲🇦

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Margareta (Custodian of the Crown) and Prince Radu 🇷🇴

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Annoying Ginger from Montecito

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Governor-General David Hurley & Linda Hurley 🇦🇺

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Prime Minister Anthony Albanese & Jodie Haydon 🇦🇺

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Prime Minister Ralph Gonsalves 🇻🇨

♔ ┆ Governmental Representatives of Commonwealth Realms

Margaret Beazley, Governor of New South Wales 🇦🇺

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Former Prime Minister Hubert Ingraham 🇧🇸

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Janice Charette, Clerk to the Privy Council of Canada and Secretary to the Cabinet 🇨🇦

High Commissioner Kisha Abba Grant 🇬🇩

High Commissioner Phil Goff 🇳🇿

Christopher Luxon, Leader of the Opposition 🇳🇿

Koni Iguan, Deputy Speaker of the National Parliament 🇵🇬

Justin Tkatchenko, Minister for Foreign Affairs 🇵🇬

Rainbo Paita, Minister for Finance and National Planning 🇵🇬

Taies Sansan, Secretary for the Department of Personnel Management 🇵🇬

Gisuwat Siniwin, former Member of the National Parliament 🇵🇬

Premier Mark Brantley of Nevis

High Commissioner Moses Kouni Mose 🇸🇧

Jeremiah Manele, Minister of Foreign Affairs and External Trade 🇸🇧

♔ ┆ Foreign Heads of States + Governments

President Andrzej Duda & First Lady Agata Kornhauser-Duda 🇵🇱

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President Michael D. Higgins & First Lady Sabina Higgins and Leo Varadkar, Taoiseach 🇮🇪

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O le Ao o le Malo Tuimalealiʻifano Vaʻaletoʻa Sualauvi II & Masiofo Faʻamausili Leinafo 🇼🇸

President Paul Kagame & First Lady Jeannette Kagame 🇷🇼

President Wavel Ramkalawan, & First Lady Linda Ramkalawan 🇸🇨

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President Julius Maada Bio & First Lady Fatima Bio 🇸🇱

Hakainde Hichilema & First Lady Mutinta Hichilema 🇿🇲

President Sergio Mattarella 🇮🇹

President Ranil Wickremesinghe 🇱🇰

President Halimah Yacob 🇸🇬

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President Filipe Nyusi 🇲🇿

President Frank-Walter Steinmeier 🇩🇪

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President Salome Zourabichvili 🇬🇪

President Katerina Sakellaropoulou 🇬🇷

President Abdul Latif Rashid 🇮🇶

President Vjosa Osmani 🇽🇰

President George Weah 🇱🇷

President Gitanas Nausėda 🇱🇹

President Mohamed Ould Ghazouani ��🇷

President Maia Sandu 🇲🇩

President Stevo Pendarovski 🇲🇰

President Lazarus McCarthy Chakwera 🇲🇼

President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih 🇲🇻

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President Wiliame Katonivere 🇫🇯

President Paul Biya 🇨🇲

President Nikos Christodoulides 🇨🇾

President Mohamed Bazoum 🇳🇪

President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa 🇵🇹

President Klaus Iohannis 🇷🇴

President Macky Sall 🇸🇳

President Zuzana Čaputová 🇸🇰

President Nataša Pirc Musar 🇸🇮

President Võ Văn Thưởng 🇻🇳

Emmerson Mnangagwa 🇿🇼

Chairwoman of the Council of Ministers Borjana Krišto 🇧🇦

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina 🇧🇩

Prime Minister Han Duck-soo 🇰🇷

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif 🇵🇰

President Alain Berset of the Swiss Confederation & Muriel Zeender 🇨🇭

Prime Minister Galab Donev 🇧🇬

♔ ┆ Governmental Representatives

First Lady Jill Biden & Finnegan Biden and John Kerry, Special Presidential Envoy for Climate 🇺🇸

First Lady Olena Zelenska 🇺🇦

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Vice President Jagdeep Dhankar 🇮🇳

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Vice President Tiémoko Meyliet Koné 🇨🇮

Vice President Han Zeng 🇨🇳

Vice President Mohammed B.S Jallow 🇬🇲

Sahiba Gafarova, Speaker of the National Assembly 🇦🇿

Christophe Mboso N'Kodia Pwanga, President of the National Assembly 🇨🇩

Arnoldo André, Minister of Foreign Affairs 🇨🇷

Naledi Pandor, Minister of International Relations and Cooperation 🇿🇦

Nabil Ammar, Minister of Foreign Affairs 🇹🇳

Narayan Prakash Saud, Minister of Foreign Affairs 🇳🇵

Gustavo Manrique, Foreign Minister 🇪🇨

Ahmed Attaf, Foreign Minister 🇩🇿

Frederick Shava, Foreign Minister & Mthuli Ncube, Finance Minister 🇿🇼

Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Cardinal Secretary of State 🇻🇦

Ambassador José Alberto Briz Gutiérrez 🇬🇹

♔ ┆ Representatives from International Organizations

Amina Jane Mohammed, Deputy Secretary General 🇺🇳

Ursula von der Leyen, President of EU Commission 🇪🇺

Charles Michel, EU Council President 🇪🇺

Roberta Metsola, President of the European Parliament 🇪🇺

[a-shade-of-blue]

New Gaza fundraiser asks I've received (1-2 September)

Ahmed Khalil (@ahmed0khalil): Ahmed is a 6-year-old child from a family of 8. His father has diabetes, his brother Fathi is blind, his other brother Abdullah is autistic, and his brother Mohammed was injured in his leg by shrapnel from rockets. They are trying to evacuate out of Gaza. (https://gofund.me/e7d2b5e4) (shared by 90-ghost) (Low funds! Only €930 raised of €50,000 goal) 

Maram Nabulsi (@maram-gaza): Maram is 17 years old and from a family of 5. She wishes to specialize in human medicine in uni, but she lost her last year of education in high school due to the current genocide. Her sister Nour (19) was studying engineering in uni, while her brother Mahmoud (13) had to stop his education as well. (https://gofund.me/bf39d32f) (vetted by association. Maram is a friend of @yousefjehad3 (132 on the Bees and Watermelons verified fundraiser list, shared by 90-ghost, #255 on the verified fundraiser sheet vetted by el-shab-hussein and nabulsi). See post here for proof.) (Low funds! Only €380 raised of €70,000 goal)

Mustafa Zaqout (@dutifullymykid): The Zaqout family consists of 8 people, including Mustafa’s grandparents, his sons and their wives and children. Their house has been destroyed and they are trying to evacuate out of Gaza. (https://gofund.me/92eb45f3) (vetted by association.campaign belongs to the parents of @burningnightgiver (shared by 90-ghost). See post here for proof) (Low funds! Only £360 raised of £45,000 goal)

Yahya Alhabi (@omaryahya10, @yahyaahlbil): Yahya is a 20-year-old pharmacy student. His father suffers from chronic diseases, heart disease, blood pressure, diabetes, and a defect in two cartilages in his back and a cartilage in his neck. He needs medication that are not available in Gaza. His little brother suffers from suffers from visual acuity and needs a surgery. (https://gofund.me/2dec49e4) (shared by 90-ghost. Also vetted by association. Yahya is a nephew of @aya2mohammed (#166 on the verified fundraiser list vetted by el-shab-husssein and nabulsi)) (Low funds! Only €35 raised of €50,000 goal)

Abdul Salam Al-Anqa (@abdulsalamalanqar, @aboodfamily): Abdul and Aya have a baby named Iman (1). In addition, his family consists of his parents and his 3 brothers: Mohammed (14), Nader (17), and Omar (21). This house has been destroyed and they have been displaced more than 9 times. Abdul used to be a car technician. They are trying to evacuate out of Gaza. (https://gofund.me/282839cd) (vetted by association through @abuadamfamily (vetted by el-shab-hussein, #174 on Verified fundraiser list vetted by el-shab-hussein and nabulsi), see post here.) (Low funds! Only €621 raised of €50,000 goal)

Mohammed Hussein Ismaeel (@m8hammed): Mohammed is 23 years old and has 2 sisters: Iman (18) and Noor (13). The bombing took the lives of two of his relatives and injured several family members. His house has also been destroyed. His father suffered a cut in a finger tendon, and his sister Iman contracted hepatitis. They are trying to evacuate out of Gaza.  (https://gofund.me/e089ccce) (vetted by @/ibtisams before they deactivated.)

1 September

Faten Baroud (@fatenfamily): Faten was a pharmacist before the war. She has two sisters (Dima and Lina) and two brothers (Nidal and Ahmed, who is only 15). She lost her eldest brother Nidal and have not heard anything from him since November. They managed to pull his wife and children out of the rubble and is now trying to care for them as well. She got engaged a few months before the war and was plannign to travel to her fiance outside the country. However, she is now trapped in Gaza. They are trying to evacuate out of Gaza. (https://gofund.me/6cab1c4a) (#289 on the verified fundraiser list by el-shab-hussein and nabulsi) (Low funds! Only kr4,941 NOK raised of kr1,000,000 goal!)

Tawfik Satoom (@monagaza): Tawfik is an engineer and his parents (Waleed and Mona), his sister Rima (17) and his brother Ahmad (13). Their house has been destroyed, and they are trying to evacuate out of Gaza.  (https://gofund.me/9b7423e3) (#164 on the verified fundraiser list vetted by el-shab-hussein and nabulsi and #238 on the Operation Olive Branch verified fundraiser list)

Ghada Karyym (@ghada-zaki): Ghada is 23 years old and the eldest of 6 sisters. She is a solar energy technician, and has won the International Green Skill Competition. She has become the sole provider for her family since her father was injured in a car accident. But this current war means that she lost her job and her father was unable to complete his medical treatment. Ghada also requires medical treatment due to the loud bombing blowing a hole in her eardrum. They are trying to evacuate out of Gaza. (https://gofund.me/4e16cb44) ( shared by bilal-salah0/ vetted by association, Ghada is his friend from Northern Gaza! (Bilal-salah0's campaign is listed as #132 on the verified fundraiser spreadsheet vetted by el-shab-hussein and nabulsi. His campaign has reached its goal and he is trying to support other campaigns now, see post here))

Click here for my Masterlist for fundraisers from 13 July - 25 July.

Click here for my Masterlist for fundraisers from 26 July -29 July.

Click here for my Masterlist for fundraisers from 30 July - 1 August.

Click here for my Masterlist for fundraisers from 2 August - 5 August.

Click here for my Masterlist for fundraisers from 6 August - 10 August.

Click here for my Masterlist for fundraisers from 11 August - 14 August.

Click here for my Masterlist for fundraisers from 15 August - 18 August

Click here for my Masterlist for fundrasiers from 19 August - 21 August

Click here for my Masterlist for fundrasiers from 22 August - 24 August

Click here for my Masterlist for fundraisers from 25 August - 28 August

How does vetting and verification work? See post here. (also read comments regarding 90-ghost and why we trust the campaigns he has shared)

Click here for my Google Doc with my complete masterlist of all the Palestinian gfm asks I've received, updated daily (along with other verified ways to send aid to Gaza). (I originally compiled it so it is easier for me to answer asks, but since I'm sharing it on my personal IG I might as well share it here too)

See post here for other verified ways to send aid to Gaza.

Don't forget your Daily Clicks on Arab.org, it's free!!! and Every click made is registered in their system and generates donation from sponsors/advertisers.

[tiaramania]

Crown Prince Hussein of Jordan & Rajwa Al Saif's Upcoming Wedding

Only one week day left until the wedding of Crown Prince Hussein of Jordan and Rajwa bint Khaled Al Saif! It will be held on June 1st at 4:00pm at Zahran Palace followed by a reception at Al Husseiniya Palace. The future Crown Princess Rajwa's engagement ring features a large pear shaped diamond but for her henna party she wore a different ring with tilted marquis cut diamonds.

If Rajwa chooses a tiara that already belongs to the JRF, my choice is Queen Rania's Arabic Scroll Tiara. She has already worn several pairs of earrings loaned by her future mother-in-law so wearing one of her tiaras is a strong possibility.

However, my prediction is for her getting a brand new tiara especially after Princess Iman debuted a new tiara at her wedding earlier this year. The tiara might be a gift from either from the JRF or from her own family, who are apparently quite wealthy, but I very much doubt that they will release any information about the tiara like they will for the gown.

Queen Rania hosted the henna party on May 22nd at Raghadan Palace (here's a longer video and the highlight video is below) and King Abdullah will host the sahra party on May 31st at the Bani Hashem Matharib. There's also a concert on the 29th and practices are underway for the parades and drone shows so I expect this to be a pretty big celebration.

The dress code for the guests will be long dresses but no tiaras. The Jordanian royals aren't very big on tiaras so I wasn't expecting the dress code to include them. Update: Saad Salman is now reporting that the guests will also be wearing tiaras most likely at the banquet following the wedding.

The foreign royals that have confirmed attendance so far are...

Belgium - King Philippe & Crown Princess Elisabeth

Bhutan - Queen Jetsun Pema & Princess Eeuphelma

Brunei - Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah & Prince Mateen

Denmark - Crown Prince Frederik & Crown Princess Mary

Japan - Princess Takamado & Princess Tsuguko

Kuwait - Sheikh Ahmad Al Abdullah Al Sabah

Liechtenstein - Hereditary Prince Alois & Hereditary Princess Sophie

Luxembourg - Prince Sebastien

Malaysia - King Abdullah & Queen Azizah

Netherlands - King Willem Alexander, Queen Maxima, & Crown Princess Catharina Amalia

Norway - Crown Prince Haakon

Oman - Crown Prince Theyazin bin Haitham

Qatar - Sheikha Moza bint Nasser & Sheikh Khalifa bin Hamad

Romania - Princess Margareta & Prince Radu

Saudi Arabia - Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (he's the official representation but I expect more Saudi royals because Rajwa is related to a lot of them through her mother)

Spain - King Juan Carlos & Queen Sofia

Sweden - Crown Princess Victoria & Prince Daniel

United Kingdom - Prince of Wales, Princess of Wales, & Princess Beatrice of York

[brookstonalmanac]

Events 2.7

457 – Leo I becomes the Eastern Roman emperor. 987 – Bardas Phokas the Younger and Bardas Skleros, Byzantine generals of the military elite, begin a wide-scale rebellion against Emperor Basil II. 1301 – Edward of Caernarvon (later king Edward II of England) becomes the first English Prince of Wales. 1313 – King Thihathu founds the Pinya Kingdom as the de jure successor state of the Pagan Kingdom. 1365 – Albert III of Mecklenburg (King Albert of Sweden) grants city rights to Ulvila (Swedish: Ulvsby). 1497 – In Florence, Italy, supporters of Girolamo Savonarola burn cosmetics, art, and books, in a "Bonfire of the vanities". 1756 – Guaraní War: The leader of the Guaraní rebels, Sepé Tiaraju, is killed in a skirmish with Spanish and Portuguese troops. 1783 – American Revolutionary War: French and Spanish forces lift the Great Siege of Gibraltar. 1795 – The 11th Amendment to the United States Constitution is ratified. 1807 – Napoleonic Wars: Napoleon finds Bennigsen's Russian forces taking a stand at Eylau. After bitter fighting, the French take the town, but the Russians resume the battle the next day. 1812 – The strongest in a series of earthquakes strikes New Madrid, Missouri. 1813 – In the action of 7 February 1813 near the Îles de Los, the frigates Aréthuse and Amelia batter each other, but neither can gain the upper hand. 1819 – Sir Thomas Stamford Raffles leaves Singapore after just taking it over, leaving it in the hands of William Farquhar. 1842 – Battle of Debre Tabor: Ras Ali Alula, Regent of the Emperor of Ethiopia defeats warlord Wube Haile Maryam of Semien. 1854 – A law is approved to found the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology. Lectures started October 16, 1855. 1863 – HMS Orpheus sinks off the coast of Auckland, New Zealand, killing 189. 1894 – The Cripple Creek miner's strike, led by the Western Federation of Miners, begins in Cripple Creek, Colorado, United States. 1898 – Dreyfus affair: Émile Zola is brought to trial for libel for publishing J'Accuse…! 1900 – Second Boer War: British troops fail in their third attempt to lift the Siege of Ladysmith. 1900 – A Chinese immigrant in San Francisco falls ill to bubonic plague in the first plague epidemic in the continental United States. 1904 – A fire begins in Baltimore, Maryland;[12] it destroys over 1,500 buildings in 30 hours. 1940 – The second full-length animated Walt Disney film, Pinocchio, premieres. 1943 – World War II: Imperial Japanese Navy forces complete the evacuation of Imperial Japanese Army troops from Guadalcanal during Operation Ke, ending Japanese attempts to retake the island from Allied forces in the Guadalcanal Campaign. 1944 – World War II: In Anzio, Italy, German forces launch a counteroffensive during the Allied Operation Shingle. 1951 – Korean War: More than 700 suspected communist sympathizers are massacred by South Korean forces. 1962 – The United States bans all Cuban imports and exports. 1974 – Grenada gains independence from the United Kingdom. 1979 – Pluto moves inside Neptune's orbit for the first time since either was discovered. 1984 – Space Shuttle program: STS-41-B Mission: Astronauts Bruce McCandless II and Robert L. Stewart make the first untethered space walk using the Manned Maneuvering Unit (MMU). 1986 – Twenty-eight years of one-family rule end in Haiti, when President Jean-Claude Duvalier flees the Caribbean nation. 1990 – Dissolution of the Soviet Union: The Central Committee of the Soviet Communist Party agrees to give up its monopoly on power. 1991 – Haiti's first democratically elected president, Jean-Bertrand Aristide, is sworn in. 1991 – The Troubles: The Provisional IRA launches a mortar attack on 10 Downing Street in London, the headquarters of the British government. 1992 – The Maastricht Treaty is signed, leading to the creation of the European Union. 1995 – Ramzi Yousef, the mastermind of the 1993 World Trade Center bombing, is arrested in Islamabad, Pakistan. 1999 – Crown Prince Abdullah becomes the King of Jordan on the death of his father, King Hussein. 2001 – Space Shuttle program: Space Shuttle Atlantis is launched on mission STS-98, carrying the Destiny laboratory module to the International Space Station. 2009 – Bushfires in Victoria leave 173 dead in the worst natural disaster in Australia's history. 2012 – President Mohamed Nasheed of the Republic of Maldives resigns, after 23 days of anti-governmental protests calling for the release of the Chief Judge unlawfully arrested by the military. 2013 – The U.S. state of Mississippi officially certifies the Thirteenth Amendment, becoming the last state to approve the abolition of slavery. The Thirteenth Amendment was formally ratified by Mississippi in 1995. 2014 – Scientists announce that the Happisburgh footprints in Norfolk, England, date back to more than 800,000 years ago, making them the oldest known hominid footprints outside Africa. 2016 – North Korea launches Kwangmyŏngsŏng-4 into outer space violating multiple UN treaties and prompting condemnation from around the world. 2021 – The 2021 Uttarakhand flood begins.

[head-post]

Girl, 11, stabbed in London confirmed to be Australian

An 11-year-old girl stabbed eight times with a steak knife in Leicester Square this week has been identified as an Australian tourist on holiday with her family.

Ioan Pintaru, a Romanian national of no fixed address, is charged with attempted murder after he allegedly clasped the 11-year-old girl and stabbed her, wounding her in the face, shoulder, wrist and neck.

The girl was with her 34-year-old mother when she was attacked in one of London’s busiest tourist spots at around 11.30 a.m. on Monday.

The victim was taken to hospital, she survived the attack but requires plastic surgery. It has now emerged that the mother and her daughter were Australian tourists.

The Australian Department of Foreign Affairs said it was offering assistance but did not specify what it was. A spokeswoman said:

The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade is providing consular assistance to two Australians injured in London. Owing to our privacy obligations we cannot provide further comment.

Pintaru, 32, also faces charges of possession of a stabbing object in a public place. During a brief trial at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on Tuesday, prosecutors argued that the weapon he used to attack the girl was a steak knife. Prosecutor David Burns told the court:

Fortunately members of the public intervened, which prevented any further injury to the child.

Abdullah, a security guard working at a TWG tea shop, was hailed by the British press as a hero for stopping the attacker. He said:

I heard a scream. I just saw a kid that was getting stabbed and I just tried to save her. I saw that he was stabbing a kid, I jumped on him, hold the hand which wasn’t carrying the knife and just put him down on the floor and just hold him and just kicked the knife away from him. And then a couple of more people joined and we just hold him until the police came.

Pintar will appear in court on September 10. He has been remanded in custody. His motive was not terrorism-related and he did not know the woman or the child, who, according to the ABC, were from New South Wales.

Read more HERE

[theroyalhousewhittingtonts4]

An appreciation post for the Queen who never was meant to be.

Elizabeth Victoria Frances Whittington was born on the 17th of October, 1959. The second youngest child of King Leonidas IX she had a knack for getting into trouble and getting her way. As she wasn't expected to be Queen she didn't have as many expectations which let the King be more lenient with her and her siblings after James and Charlotte were born. She was a straight A student with a special love for botany, painting, and wildlife. She went to the University of Britechster and excelled in her studies. It was there she met The Crown Prince of Windenberg, Stephan. Ironically enough he was at one point dating her sister Charlotte but that didn't work out and Charlotte met the Crown Prince Kiyoshi of the Royal House of Ito at a charity gala in San Myshuno. Months later, they began dating and eventually got married. Stephan went on to live a sort of playboy lifestyle after getting his heart broken by Charlotte but then he met Elizabeth. Not wanting to be messy he asked her brother who was by then The King, James I, for his blessing, seeing as he wasn't at fault with his and Charlottes relationship failing he didn't have an issue with him. But the King was privy to the Crown Princes antics and he wanted to be sure he wouldn't mistreat his little sister. He was quoted in saying "Such a grievous would certainly result in war between our families and neither of us want that" Stephan reassured the King that he wouldn't mistreat his sister and James reluctantly gave his blessing and they went on to get married on the 24th of August, 1985 In South Minster Abbey in Windenberg.

They had a lovely turnout with guests from all over coming out to celebrate the new union. Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip, The Prince and Princess of Wales, Queen Beatrix and Prince Willem Alexander of the Netherlands, King Fahd of Saudi Arabia with The Crown Prince Abdullah, King Badouin of Belgium, King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden with his wife Queen Silvia, and King Hassan II of Morocco with his wife Queen Lalla and Crown Prince Mohammad. President Reagan was invited but his invitation was lost in the mail Vice President George Bush must have found it because he made his way with his wife Barbara along with former president Jimmy Carter who was ironically the only one actually invited besides the president.

After the royal wedding of Princess Elizabeth to Prince Stephan Von Windenburg, they had a successful marriage and reign for many years. Here you see the Royal Family posing for a portrait before the births of the princesses Olga and Helga with their daughter and heir presumptive Madeline Shortly after his coronation.

The people were hesitant seeing as she wasn't the Princess Royal, Charlotte, who actually went to marry the Crown Prince Kiyoshi of Japan. Elizabeth was so terribly misjudged as she was to become known as one of the most beloved Queen Consorts in all of Windenberg. Known for her humanitarian efforts and her leading the charge to fight world hunger, she became known as Mother Eliza.

[thesblu]

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[alaturkanews]

The Prince and Princess of Wales attend royal wedding in Jordan

Britain’s Prince and Princess of Wales were among the international royals and heads of state attending the wedding of Jordan's Crown Prince Hussein bin Abdullah II and Rajwa Alseif. #CNN #News #shorts #royalwedding #princewilliam #princeandprincessofwales #williamandkate #jordanroyalwedding

[rebelsandtherest]

If it's okay with you, could you please give the artist names for the AI generator? All of the portraits are so pretty and I want to know the artists so I can find more :D! Thank you and hope you're having a great day!

Hey Anon,

Sure! I probably should've listed the artists, sorry I didn't. Do note, for many of the portraits, I ended up using two or three artists at the same time. As I believe I've said elsewhere, the artists were selected purely based on their nationality and how I thought their style would translate to portraiture. I found most of the via google, and had a lot of fun learning about some artists I'd not heard of before!

Argentina: Norma Bessouet and Raquel Forner

Australia: Frederick McCubbin and Kim Leutwyler

Brazil: Manuel Lopes Rodrigues, Manuel de Araújo Porto Alegre, and Almeida Junior

Canada: Frederick Varley Bertha M. Ingle and Robert Harris

Colombia: Ricardo Acevedo Bernal and Andrés de Santa Maria

China: Shen Zhou and Tang Yin and Gu Hongzhong

Croatia: Vlaho Bukovac, Federiko Benkovic, and Robert Auer

Czechia: Alphonse Mucha

Egypt: Helena of Egypt, Mahmoud Sa'id, and Abdel Aal Hassan

England: John William Waterhouse and Joseph Wright of Derby

Ethiopia: Adis Gebru and Afewerk ekle

Finland: Elin Danielson-Gambogi, Pekka Halonen, and Helene Schjerfbeck

France: Charles-Amable Lenoir and Claude Monet

Germany: Albrecht Dürer, Franz Xaver Winterhalter, and Otto Dix

India: Raja Ravi Varma and Amrita Sher-Gil

Ireland: Frederic William Burton

Japan: Yokoyama Taikan and Utamaro Kitagawa

Jordan: Muhanna Al-Dura and Zaina El-Said

Mexico: Frida Kahlo and José Salomé Pina

Morocco: Zakaria Ramhani, Abbès Saladi, and Hassan El Glaoui

New Zealand: Gottfried Lindauer and Kura Te Waru Rewiri

Portugal: Antonio Duarte and Columbano

Philippines: Fernando Amorsolo and Juan Luna

Scotland: Arthur Melville

South Korea: Joongwon Jeong, Chae Yongshin, and Lee Quede

Sweden: Carl Larsson and Anders Zorn

Switzerland: Cuno Amiet, Arnold Böcklin, and Jean-Étienne Liotard

United Arab Emirates: Abdulqader Alrais and Fatma Abdullah Lootah

United States: John Singer Sargent and Mary Cassatt

Wales: Gwen John and Brenda Chamberlain

[musicblogwales]

Welsh Music Prize 2022 finalists revealed 

The awards shortlist highlights the best talent in the Welsh music industry:  

TODAY, the shortlist for Welsh Music Prize 2022 has been announced, with 15 artists in the running for the prestigious award. Established artists Manic Street Preachers are nominated for their 14th album, along with 8 debut albums from Art School Girlfriend, Breichiau Hir, Buzzard Buzzard Buzzard, Dead Method, Danielle Lewis, L E M F R E C K, Papur Wal and Sywel Nyw. Gwenno's Tresor album, her third, is also nominated for this year’s Mercury Music Prize.  

 Supported by Creative Wales, Welsh Music Prize is an annual award celebrating the best new music created in Wales, by musicians from Wales. Previous editions have seen albums by Gruff Rhys, Gwenno and Boy Azooga win, and last year’s award was given to Inner Song by Kelly Lee Owens, from Flintshire.  The shortlisted albums have been whittled down from a longlist of 130 albums by the Welsh Music Prize jurors, with judges (announced below) now having the difficult task of choosing one of the 15 nominated albums for the coveted prize, and the £10,000 award.  

The 2022 winner will follow in a long succession of artists and albums which have gone on to national and international success. Last year’s winning album, Inner Song by Kelly Lee Owens explored the personal pain of her own struggles, while embracing the beauty of the natural world. Owens was the first recipient of the £10,000 prize, which as well as supporting her musical work, has funded charitable activity in her home of North Wales. She has also released the theme song for next year’s FIFA Women’s World Cup.  

This years’ ceremony at Wales Millennium Centre will be presented by BBC Radio 1 presenter Sian Eleri. For the very first time, the event will welcome a live public audience as part of Llais, Cardiff’s flagship international arts festival, and include performances by some of the shortlisted performers. 

This year the Welsh Music Prize will open Llais, which returns to Cardiff from 26-30th October with an eclectic line-up of international acts including John Cale, Pussy Riot, Cate Le Bon (shortlisted for Welsh Music Prize for her album Pompeii), Death Songbook, Abdullah Ibrahim, Midlake, and black midi.  

The charity Help Musicians will also support three Triskel Awardees to grow further with financial support towards their music and careers of up to £5,000 each. The three Triskel Award winners - Aderyn, Minas and Sage Todz - will receive a £5,000 financial award to assist their careers. The Triskel Awards are given to three artists who judges believe offer a bright future for music in Wales. 

This year, the charity has expanded its support for the emerging Welsh talent with one-to-one application writing support and tailored business skills guidance with music industry experts, reinforcing their long-term career plans.  Huw Stephens said: “This year’s shortlist is a great collection of albums, a huge congratulations to all the shortlisted artists. We are very happy that Creative Wales are supporting the Prize again this year, and it's exciting to be part of Llais at the Wales Millennium Centre.  “We’re also delighted and grateful that Help Musicians have significantly raised their investment to support the three Triskel Awardees with an amazing package to build their careers"  

“Creativity in Wales doesn't stop; music is at the beating heart of Wales and it's great to see another excellent selection of albums highlighted this year.”

Deputy Minister for Arts and Sport, Dawn Bowden, said: “I’m delighted that Creative Wales is supporting the Welsh Music Prize for the fourth year. The shortlist reflects the diversity of genres and artists making such exciting music in Wales today.    “The Welsh Music Prize is a celebration and recognition of excellence and creativity in Welsh Music – and I’d like to congratulate all those shortlisted and we look forward to the winner being revealed later this month.”   

Peter Leathem, Chief Executive Officer at PPL, said: “The Welsh Music Prize is an important celebra-tion of the talent and diversity within the country’s music sector. It recognises renowned talents for their latest work while also championing emerging artists and their equally valuable output.   “PPL is proud to be a long-term supporter of the Welsh Music Prize and to help showcase the coun-try’s best records of the last year. Congratulations to everyone shortlisted.”   

Caroline Hansell, Head of Musicians’ Development at Help Musicians, said: “We’re delighted to be there at the start of the Triskell Awardees’ journey for the fourth year. We understand how challeng-ing financial barriers are to overcome for emerging musicians, especially in current circumstances, which is why we are providing even more support for this year’s winners.   “Funding has become increasingly needed for musicians at all stages, but we know applying for it can be a hurdle in itself, so we’re here to help Aderyn, Minas and Sage Todz build skills that will help them create sustainable careers in music. Congratulations to all the nominees and awardees who contribute so much to Welsh music and beyond.”  

[thisdayinwwi]

Jan 1 1915 #OTD Near near Broken Hill, New South Wales, Badsha Mahommed Gool and ice-cream vendor Mullah Abdullah ally themselves with the Ottoman Empire and attack Australian civilians on their way to a picnic killing 4. Attack became known as Battle of Broken Hill

[comrade-meow]

Pandora Papers: The secret owners of UK property worth billions

The secret owners of more than 1,500 UK properties bought using offshore firms have been uncovered by a BBC investigation.

The details are featured in the Pandora Papers leak of offshore financial documents and list property with an estimated value in excess of £4bn.

The owners include high-profile foreign politicians, individuals accused of corruption and UK political donors.

Ministers say they will bring in a new law when they have parliamentary time.

Successive Conservative governments have pledged to introduce legislation making it compulsory to name those owning property via foreign companies in a bid to stamp out money-laundering.

Among the revelations:

Retail magnate Sir Philip Green and his wife went on a buying spree of London property while the couple's recently sold High Street empire teetered on the verge of collapse

The Qatari ruling family purchased two of London's most expensive homes through offshore companies, saving millions of pounds in tax

Ukrainian billionaire Gennadiy Bogolyubov, who is under investigation by the FBI and had hundreds of millions in assets frozen in a fraud case, owns more than £400m of UK property

A £40m London office block is owned by the son of sanctioned Russian oligarch Mikhail Gutseriev

The BBC worked with the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ), the Guardian, Finance Uncovered and other media outlets to identify in the leaked files the individuals behind overseas companies that owned property in England and Wales.

Owning real estate through an offshore firm is legal, and there is no suggestion of wrongdoing in simply using a foreign company to purchase property.

However, the UK government recently raised its own assessment of the money laundering risk for the property market from "medium" to "high".

The greatest level of risk is where there are "difficulties in determining the ultimate beneficial owners", according to a Home Office report in December 2020.

It comes as a number of world leaders - including the King of Jordan and the ruling family of Azerbaijan - have featured in the Pandora Papers leak after buying property in the UK using offshore companies.

The Greens

Sir Philip and Tina Green

The wife of retail tycoon Sir Philip Green purchased multi-million-pound prime London real estate as BHS, the department store chain they had owned, headed for collapse.

Her identity as the buyer of properties in London was hidden because they were bought through anonymous companies based in the British Virgin Islands, a tax haven.

The purchases included a £15m apartment in Mayfair and a new home for their daughter near Buckingham Palace, bought for £10.6m in 2016.

The buying spree took place in the months after the Greens sold BHS for a token sum to a one-time bankrupt who had no retail experience. The chain collapsed, leading to the loss of 11,000 jobs and vacant sites in town centres.

The downfall also led to an outcry when it emerged the business had left a black hole of up to £571m in its pension fund.

Through their lawyers, both Sir Philip and Lady Green declined to answer detailed questions, suggesting that these were private matters.

Qatari Ruling Family

The ruling family of Qatar

The Pandora Papers leak also reveals the property portfolio of the Qatari ruling family owned through another cross-border network of companies.

The royal Al-Thani family purchased two properties on one of the world's most expensive terraces, overlooking Regent's Park in London. They were bought through offshore companies, saving millions of pounds in tax.

BBC analysis found numerous other properties owned by members of the family through these structures, estimated to be worth over £650m.

The Qatari government did not respond to questions about the BBC's findings.

Gennadiy Bogolyubov

Gennadiy Bogolyubov

Gennadiy Bogolyubov is a Ukrainian billionaire who is under investigation by the FBI for money laundering.

He and his business partner are accused of defrauding the bank they founded of more than £1bn.

Court documents included in the Pandora Papers reveal him to be the ultimate owner of a collection of UK properties likely to be worth over £400m, including a building on Trafalgar Square.

They are held via a network of companies, some offshore, that hide the identity of the owners.

Mr Bogolyubov is the co-founder of PrivatBank, Ukraine's largest lender.

The bank was nationalised in 2016 after regulators found a £4bn hole in its balance sheets.

PrivatBank has been pursuing Mr Bogolyubov and his business partner Igor Kolomoisky through court action in England and the US, trying to reclaim more than £2bn relating to the money lost during their leadership.

In 2020 the US Department of Justice sought to seize commercial properties in Texas, Ohio and Kentucky from the pair, suspecting that they were "acquired using funds misappropriated from Privatbank". The court cases are ongoing.

Mr Bogolyubov's assets are currently subject to a worldwide freeze, secured in court by PrivatBank in 2017.

In 2016 he decided to leave the country and settle in Switzerland, partly for "tax reasons".

Lawyers for Mr Bogolyubov declined to comment as legal action is ongoing.

Mikhail Gutseriev

Mikhail Gutseriev is a Russian oligarch who was sanctioned by the UK in August for his close relationship with Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko. The Pandora Papers reveal that his son owns a multi-million pound office block through a secret offshore company, purchased for more than £40m.

Mr Gutseriev is the founder of Safmar Group, a Russian conglomerate with interests in oil, coal, property and retail.

Following the crackdown on human rights and democracy in Belarus in 2020, the UK and EU have recently brought in sanctions against President Lukashenko, along with Mr Gutseriev and other close associates.

The British government has accused the Belarusian regime of continuing to "crush democracy and violate human rights".

It described Mr Gutseriev as "a prominent Russian businessman who is one of the main private investors in Belarus and a longstanding associate of Alexander Lukashenko". It added that he had "provided support for the government of Belarus, including through use of his business interests".

Mr Gutseriev is no longer involved in Safmar, which is now part-owned by his son, Said, a British citizen.

Said Gutseriev's representatives told the BBC he did not have "any business links with his father".His lavish wedding made headlines in 2016 - it featured performances by Jennifer Lopez and Enrique Iglesias and was reported to have cost £1bn.

What is the UK government doing?

Plans for a register of foreign companies owning UK property were first announced in 2016 by then Prime Minister David Cameron, so that "corrupt individuals and countries will no longer be able to move, launder and hide illicit funds through London's property market, and will not benefit from our public funds".

Draft legislation was published two years later and "progress" on changing the law was promised in the 2019 Queen's Speech.

Earlier this year, following the G7 summit, the government reiterated its commitment to create a public register of overseas entities who own UK real estate.

However, the law has still not been introduced to Parliament and was not listed as one of the government's legislative priorities at this year's Queen's Speech.

Labour MP Margaret Hodge told the BBC that when in government David Cameron and his Chancellor George Osborne "promised us that they would create a public register of beneficial ownership here in the UK... but we've been waiting since 2016 for that promise to be enacted".

She added: "It's ready, it's sitting there, it's not complicated... but it has yet to emerge... so it's a scandal that that's not happened."

The government says it is cracking down on money laundering with tougher laws and enforcement, and that it will introduce a register of offshore companies owning UK property when parliamentary time allows.

World leaders

UK properties owned offshore by foreign leaders

The UK property holdings of the King of Jordan and the ruling family of Azerbaijan were exposed by BBC Panorama on Sunday.

Lawyers for King Abdullah said he used his personal wealth to buy the homes and there was nothing improper about him using offshore firms to do so.

Other revelations from the Pandora Papers highlight further links between foreign leaders and offshore ownership of UK property.

The family of Kenya's President Uhuru Kenyatta, which has dominated the country's politics since independence, secretly owned offshore companies for decades.

One of these firms bought an apartment in central London, according to Land Registry records.

The company was set up by Ngina Kenyatta, the president's mother, and her two daughters Kristina and Anna.

In 2018, Mr Kenyatta told the BBC Hardtalk programme that his family's wealth was known to the public, and as president he had declared his assets as required by law.

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky participated in a network of offshore companies, co-owned with his long-time friends and TV business partners, the Guardian revealed on Sunday.

These firms held assets including apartments near London's Regent's Park.

A number of world leaders have released statements denying wrongdoing after featuring in the leak.

Tory donors

Closer to home, major political donors to the Conservatives have invested in properties through offshore companies.

Conservative donors

Mohammed Amersi, bought two properties using offshore companies: a Mayfair townhouse and a country home in Gloucestershire. He was revealed by Panorama to have been involved in one of Europe's biggest corruption scandals. He denies any wrongdoing.

Lubov Chernukhin has given more than £1.8m to the party since 2012. The Pandora Papers leak revealed the scale of the secret offshore wealth she shares with her husband, a former Russian minister. It includes a house near Regent's Park in London now worth about £38m, and a mansion in Oxfordshire bought for £10m. The properties were secretly acquired through a network of offshore companies. Mrs Chernukhin's lawyers say she is a British citizen and is entitled to do as she wishes with her money

Russian businessman Victor Fedotov's companies have given £900,000 to MPs. He purchased a Hampshire manor house through a network of offshore companies. Files in the Pandora Papers suggest he made millions from a project that became mired in allegations of corruption. Mr Fedotov's lawyers said "there is no evidence whatsoever" he behaved improperly.

The BBC searched for information about donors to all of the political parties among the Pandora Papers documents but the stories that emerged from the files were about Conservative donors.

The Pandora Papers is a leak of almost 12 million documents and files exposing the secret wealth and dealings of world leaders, politicians and billionaires. The data was obtained by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists in Washington DC and has led to one of the biggest ever global investigations. More than 600 journalists from 117 countries have looked at the hidden fortunes of some of the most powerful people on the planet. BBC Panorama and the Guardian have led the investigation in the UK.

[jordanianroyals]

Royal Zoom Talk with Her Royal Highness Princess Raiyah bint Al Hussein of Jordan: My Japan Journey

Hosted by the Japan Society of Boston on Friday, October 30, 2020, US: 9:00 AM EDT online via Zoom (Zoom links will be sent to e-mail)

“Princess Raiyah received her undergraduate degree and Masters degree in Japanese Studies, and as part of her studies took a year abroad studying at Ritsumeikan University in Japan.

In 2014, she received a further MA in Japanese Literature from Columbia University in New York, after which she began her PhD in Premodern Japanese Literature at the University of California, Los Angeles in the fall of 2014. Please join us to hear Princess Raiyah share her inspiring story in this special online event.” (Register here)

Princess Raiyah bint Al Hussein began her schooling in Amman, Jordan, and went on to receive her International Baccalaureate Diploma from the United World College of the Atlantic, Wales. In July 2009, she graduated from Edinburgh University in Scotland with a BA and MA (Honours) in Japanese Studies, including a Distinction in Oral Japanese. As part of her course for the academic year 2007-8, Her Royal Highness was seconded to Ritsumeikan University in Kyoto, Japan where she took courses in Japanese, International Relations, and International Peace Studies.

In 2014, Princess Raiyah received a further MA in Japanese Literature from Columbia University in New York. She then began her PhD in Premodern Japanese Literature at the University of California, Los Angeles in the fall of 2014 and is currently a PhD Candidate working towards the completion of her dissertation. She received several fellowships during her time at UCLA as well as an award for Excellence in Teaching in June 2017.

In 1997, King Hussein bestowed the Al-Hussein Medal of Merit of the First Degree (Gold) on Princess Raiyah. In 2006, King Abdullah II awarded Her Royal Highness the Grand Cordon of the Order of Al-Nahda.

On the 26th December 2006, the Cabinet issued a directive for Princess Raiyah to be appointed as a Diplomatic Attaché with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. In 2011 she was promoted to the rank of Third Secretary, in 2014 to the rank of Second Secretary, and in 2017 to the rank of First Secretary.

In July of 2007, the Jordanian National Center for Culture and Arts, under the patronage of Princess Raiyah, participated in the Okinawa International Festival for Young Audiences– the first time an Arab organization was represented at the Festival. Princess Raiyah held a press conference and gave several speeches in Japanese in order to help promote the event and Jordan’s participation in it.

Princess Raiyah has accompanied King Abdullah II on working trips to Japan in 2004, 2005, 2006, 2008, 2009, and 2010. She also accompanied His Majesty on a working visit to South Korea in 2008.

From 2010 to 2011 Princess Raiyah served as volunteer translator for the NGO Hunger Free World. From 2011 to 2012, she worked in the Middle East Department of the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), where she assisted with projects related to Jordan, and the larger region, and also participated in various workshops held by JICA on subjects including eco-tourism, mother and child health, and barrier-free tourism. She also met with victims of the 2011 Tohoku earthquake and tsunami as well as with various NGOs active in its reconstruction and gave presentations on Jordan at various middle and elementary schools in Tokyo and Tohoku.

Princess Raiyah has been a Story Consultant for the Lucasfilm Brain Trust since January 2019.

Her Royal Highness enjoys reading, martial arts, water sports, snowboarding, volleyball, and writing and has won several prizes for horseback riding.

Princess Raiyah is fluent in Arabic, English, and Japanese. She also reads Classical and Medieval Japanese as well as Classical and Modern Chinese.

[brookstonalmanac]

Events 12.10 (after 1920)

1932 – Thailand becomes a constitutional monarchy. 1936 – Abdication Crisis: Edward VIII signs the Instrument of Abdication. 1941 – World War II: The Royal Navy capital ships HMS Prince of Wales and HMS Repulse are sunk by Imperial Japanese Navy torpedo bombers near British Malaya. 1941 – World War II: Battle of the Philippines: Imperial Japanese forces under the command of General Masaharu Homma land on Luzon. 1942 – World War II: Government of Poland in exile send Raczyński's Note (the first official report on the Holocaust) to 26 governments who signed the Declaration by United Nations. 1948 – The Human Rights Convention is signed by the United Nations. 1949 – Chinese Civil War: The People's Liberation Army begins its siege of Chengdu, the last Kuomintang-held city in mainland China, forcing President of the Republic of China Chiang Kai-shek and his government to retreat to Taiwan. 1953 – British Prime Minister Winston Churchill receives the Nobel Prize in Literature. 1963 – Zanzibar gains independence from the United Kingdom as a constitutional monarchy, under Sultan Jamshid bin Abdullah. 1963 – An assassination attempt on the British High Commissioner in Aden kills two people and wounds dozens more. 1968 – Japan's biggest heist, the still-unsolved "300 million yen robbery", is carried out in Tokyo. 1978 – Arab–Israeli conflict: Prime Minister of Israel Menachem Begin and President of Egypt Anwar Sadat are jointly awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. 1979 – Kaohsiung Incident: Taiwanese pro-democracy demonstrations are suppressed by the KMT dictatorship, and organizers are arrested. 1983 – Democracy is restored in Argentina with the inauguration of President Raúl Alfonsín. 1984 – United Nations General Assembly recognizes the Convention against Torture. 1989 – Mongolian Revolution: At the country's first open pro-democracy public demonstration, Tsakhiagiin Elbegdorj announces the establishment of the Mongolian Democratic Union. 1991 – Nursultan Nazarbayev is sworn in as the 1st President of Kazakhstan. 1991 – The Kazakh Soviet Socialist Republic is renamed into the Republic of Kazakhstan. 1993 – The last shift leaves Wearmouth Colliery in Sunderland. The closure of the 156-year-old pit marks the end of the old County Durham coalfield, which had been in operation since the Middle Ages. 1994 – Rwandan genocide: Maurice Baril, military advisor to the U.N. Secretary-General and head of the Military Division of the Department of Peacekeeping Operations, recommends that UNAMIR stand down. 1995 – The Israeli army withdraws from Nablus pursuant to the terms of Oslo Accord. 1996 – The new Constitution of South Africa is promulgated by Nelson Mandela. 1999 – Helen Clark is sworn in as Prime Minister of New Zealand, the second woman to hold the post and the first following an election. 2005 – Sosoliso Airlines Flight 1145 crashes at Port Harcourt International Airport in Nigeria, killing 108 people. 2014 – Palestinian minister Ziad Abu Ein is killed after the suppression of a demonstration by Israeli forces in the village (Turmus'ayya) in Ramallah. 2015 – Rojava conflict: The Syrian Democratic Council is established in Dêrik, forming the political wing of the Syrian Democratic Forces in northeast Syria. 2016 – Two explosions outside a football stadium in Istanbul, Turkey, kill 38 people and injure 166 others. 2017 – ISIL is defeated in Iraq. 2019 – The Ostrava hospital attack in the Czech Republic results in eight deaths, including the perpetrator. 2021 – A widespread, deadly, and violent tornado outbreak slams the Central, Midwestern, and Southern regions of the United States. Eighty-nine people are killed by the tornadoes, with most of the fatalities occurring in Kentucky, where a single tornado kills 57 people, and injures hundreds of others.

[whileiamdying]

Wadjda - Le film

A winning, handsomely crafted story with a charismatic lead guaranteed to charm international auds.

Initially the biggest talking point about “#Wadjda” will be that a woman, Haifaa Al Mansour, has directed the first Saudi Arabian feature shot entirely within the kingdom. Once the novelty is processed, critics and the public will likely agree that the pic transcends mere surprise value and delivers a winning, handsomely crafted story with a charismatic lead guaranteed to charm international auds. Resembling kid-centered Iranian pics that tackle sticky topics via pint-sized protags, “Wadjda” uses a spunky girl to explore women’s limitations within Arabian society. A vigorous fest life is assured, followed by probable arthouse play. Screenings in Saudi Arabia are another matter, since the country has no cinemas. Especially interesting will be how the film plays in the neighboring United Arab Emirates, a nation with an avid multiplex culture and a slightly more relaxed view of women’s roles in society. Shooting had to be a difficult undertaking, no doubt helped by powerful supporters; Prince Al-Waleed bin Talal is given prominent thanks in the closing credits, and while Germany’s Razor Film is the main producing entity, backing comes from a range of global movie initiatives including The Royal Film Commission Jordan - RFC, the Abu Dhabi Film Commission, Sundance Film Festival and the Hubert Bals Fund. Al Mansour trained abroad and has award-winning shorts and a docu, “Women Without Shadows,” already under her belt, so although producers Roman Paul and Gerhard Meixner may have helped shape the pic along international lines, “Wadjda” feels geared to Arab and global auds. Repetitions of women’s constraints, already well established in the script, are likely meant for foreign viewers, though plenty of lines, including humorous ones, are included for local ears. Ten-year-old Wadjda (newcomer Waad Mohammed) and her mom (Reem Abdullah) live in a Riyadh suburb, with Wadjda’s affectionate father (Sultan Al Assaf) making only occasional visits from his parents’ house nearby. Mom suspects her in-laws are looking to marry her husband off again since she hasn’t produced a son, but he denies having eyes for anyone else. Mom talks of little else except pleasing her husband, yet Wadjda is preoccupied with asserting her independence on the playground with best friend Abdullah (Abdullrahman Al Gohani). Most of all, she wants a bike so they can race together, but girls aren’t allowed to ride bikes in Saudi Arabia for fear that they would compromise a woman’s virginity (and encourage freedom of movement in a country where women aren’t allowed to drive). A new green bike at the local toy store captures Wadjda’s fancy, and she’s determined to raise the $213 needed. Constantly scolded for lax girlish propriety by her headmistress, Hussa (Ahd), Wadjda surprises the school by enrolling in a Koran competition whose prize money will more than cover the bike’s purchase. Wadjda is constantly told she’s overstepping mandatory modesty; her voice shouldn’t be overheard by men, her head must be covered, she mustn’t listen to pop songs. Yet, delightfully, the girl is anything but contrite. Constantly banging into metaphorical walls erected around her gender, Wadjda’s blithe resolve protects her from bruises: With her irresistible combination of spunk and guile, she’ll achieve her goals. The adults around her aren’t so lucky, starting with her mother, whose fixation on her husband blinds her to much else (however, the pic foregrounds a loving relationship between mother and daughter). Another side of the coin is Hussa, a hardline hypocrite who compensates for her own frustrations by rigidly imposing Wahabi codes of behavior. With enormous sympathy for all, Al Mansour captures the isolation of Saudi women and their parallel lives of freedom at home and invisibility outside. A natural onscreen who was 12 at the time of shooting, young thesp Mohammed captivates with a palpable confidence: Her T-shirt proudly proclaims, “I am a Great Catch!,” and she is. Single-monikered Ahd is a believable scold, and while other thesps, including Saudi TV star Abdullah, are less comfortable in emotional roles, they maintain an authentic honesty. Visuals are clean and satisfying, revealing a confident fluency in compositions and lensing. The majority of the crew is German, but Al Mansour delivers a final product that thankfully doesn’t disguise its Arab origins under a generic internationalism. Although there’s a level of predictability to the finale, it acts as a gift not just to Wadjda, but to her audience. — Jay Weissberg, Variety