Category World News

As Trump tries to deregulate and reprioritize fossil fuels, the decision on Friday is expected to have an impact on 12 offshore projects, including a $ 427 million project in California.

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy claimed in a statement that the funding was a waste of money that could have been used to “revitalize America’s maritime industry.”

Real infrastructure improvements are prioritized over “fantasy wind projects that cost a lot and offer little,” he said as a result of President Trump’s remarks.

As part of a wider shift toward green energy, the funding had been given under former president Joe Biden’s control.

The Humboldt Bay project, which was supposed to be the first offshore wind terminal on the Pacific coast, received funding among the cancellations.

Governor Gavin Newsom’s decision to support the action was criticized as an example of the administration “assaulting clean energy and infrastructure projects – hurting business and killing jobs in rural areas, and ceding our economic future to China,” according to a spokesperson for the governor.

A $47 million grant was awarded in 2022 for an offshore wind terminal project close to New York’s Staten Island, in addition to the $48 million that was awarded for an offshore wind logistics and manufacturing hub near the Port of Baltimore in Maryland.

For a port project to redevelop a vacant industrial building for offshore wind projects, $ 33 million was also cut.

Activists in Massachusetts and Massachusetts said canceled the Salem grant would result in 800 construction workers losing their jobs, according to Massachusetts governor Maura Healey.

She claimed that the Trump administration is “turning away tens of millions of dollars” in support of a project that is already being worked on to increase our energy supply.

The Trump administration abruptly halted the construction of a nearly finished wind farm off the coast of Rhode Island and Connecticut, according to the latest trimming. Without providing further details, the Department of the Interior claimed the action was necessary to address concerns about national security.

A significant wind farm in Idaho that had been approved in Biden’s final days of presidency was also cancelled by the Interior Department in early August.

Multiple federal agencies, including the Departments of Defense, Energy, and Commerce, reported that they are looking into offshore wind farms along the Atlantic coast that the Biden administration had approved.

Trump has frequently criticised green energy, particularly wind power, for being ugly and expensive energy that “smart” nations don’t use.

However, as renewable energy is increasingly being used to combat climate change, both domestically and internationally. For instance, China has made significant investments in wind and solar energy, becoming a leading supplier of wind turbine parts.

Trump’s strategy, according to critics, will put the United States in the backseat of its rivals.

Trump falsely attributed the skyrocketing prices to renewable energy last week, calling the industry a “scam” as US electricity prices increased at more than twice the rate of inflation.

He vowed to stop all wind power projects on Tuesday.

Following a kidnapping at an orphanage in Haiti, eight people have been free, including a three-year-old girl and an Irish missionary.

The group’s captivity came to an end with the announcement on Friday, which included Irish missionary Gena Heraty, the director of the Saint-Helene orphanage’s special needs program.

In a statement posted on X, Ireland’s Foreign Affairs Minister Simon Harris stated, “We warmly welcome the news that Gena and all of the Haitian nationals taken captive on [August 3], including a young child, are reported to be safe and well.

In Haiti, where gang violence has risen amid overlapping political, humanitarian, and security crises, kidnappings and ransoms have become more common.

The targeted orphanage was located in Port-au-Prince, which according to the United Nations has gangs controlling nearly 90% of the area.

The orphanage, which is run by the global charity Nos Petits Freres et Soeurs, serves more than 240 children, according to its website.

Not immediately available any additional information about the release. Although the Viv Ansanm gang federation controls the area, no one claimed responsibility for the school’s early August attack.

Heraty’s family said in a statement that they were “relieved beyond words.”

They wrote, “We continue to hold Haiti in our hearts and hope for peace and safety for all those there who are impacted by the ongoing armed violence and insecurity.”

Two French priests were among 10 people abducted by the “400 Mawozo” gang in April 2021 before being freed nearly three weeks later.

Six months later, the gang abducted 17 American and Canadian missionaries.

The UN Security Council is holding discussions to bolster a sluggish international police force that will be deployed to Haiti starting in June 2024 to combat the rising violence as they approach.

The US-backed mission currently has just under 1, 000 personnel there, which is a lot lower than the 2, 500 troops that were originally anticipated.

The US and Panama have released a draft proposal to transform the operation into a so-called “Gang Suppression Force” this week.

The proposal would authorize the deployment of up to 5,500 people and establish a UN office in Port-au-Prince to provide “full logistical support” for rations, fuel, medical services, ground transportation, and drone surveillance.

Further, it provided a strategy to encourage more volunteer and financial resources, but the draft did not specifically address the current mission’s lagging support. The UN reported earlier this month that less than 10% of Haiti’s efforts were being funded.

In Haiti, UN missions have historically led to sexual abuse scandals and cholera epidemics that have claimed more than 9, 000 lives.

The country’s leaders have asked for extraterrestrial assistance in response to the rising violence and displacement.

At least 3, 141 people have died in Haiti during the first half of this year, according to the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights.

President Prabowo Subianto urged people to “trust the government and my leadership” in a video address recorded on Friday.

However, protesters pelted the police mobile brigade’s headquarters and set fire to a five-story building close to the police compound in Jakarta’s Kwitang neighborhood.

The biggest test for Prabowo’s presidency since taking office in October was the continuation of demonstrations despite the heavy rains that had poured in until the evening.

What facts about the ongoing unrest are necessary:

What grievances do protesters have?

The riots represent the most extreme form of political and economic frustration in recent years.

According to reports, 580 parliamentarians are also paid a monthly salary of 50 million rupiah ($3,000). The allowance, which was introduced last year, is nearly 10 times the minimum wage in the poorest parts of the nation and about 20 times the minimum wage there.

More than 280 million people, including police and parliamentarians, have a common perception of corruption among them.

One of the organizers of the demonstration, Gejayan Memanggil, claimed that demonstrators were calling for the pay of parliamentarians, who he called “corrupt elites.”

Protesters also assert that many people’s lives are ruined by inflation and taxes. The minimum wage must be raised in accordance with inflation rates, according to organizers.

Former military general Prabowo campaigned for investment-friendly policies that would increase Southeast Asia’s largest economy to 8% in five years.

However, some people believe his pledge to be too lofty, and Donald Trump’s tariffs on US trading partners have heightened the uncertainty.

What has occurred?

On Monday, black-clad protesters attempted to break into Indonesia’s parliament building with rocks and fireworks before starting a nationwide protest.

The public remained uneasy for the following days, but a video of the motorcycle taxi driver’s death shocked the country on Thursday, prompting more violence against security forces.

Affan Kurniawan, 21, was reportedly completing a food delivery service order when riot police dispersed crowds outside Indonesia’s House of Representatives.

On Friday, protesters marched to the police mobile brigade’s headquarters in Jakarta, where some destroyed traffic signals and other infrastructure, bringing traffic to a standstill.

As the clashes waned, and tear gas remained in the air and protesters refused to flee as the sun set.

Protesters blew up the governor’s office compound in Surabaya, the second-largest city in Indonesia, after igniting fences and ignitting cars. Water cannon and tear gas were used by security forces, but demonstrators retaliated with fireworks and wooden clubs.

In the easternmost Papua region, Surabaya, Solo, Yogyakarta, Medan, Makassar, Manado, Bandung, and Manokwari were also the locations of demonstrations in other cities across the nation.

What might come next?

Indonesia’s former prime minister has demanded a “deep and honest investigation” into the death of Kurniawan.

In the midst of a sharp selloff in Indonesia’s stocks, which closed at 1.5 percent on Friday while the rupiah dropped 0.8% against the US dollar, Prabowo’s administration will face this.

As Prabowo tries to acclimatize the population, a further economic slump might add fuel to the mix.