⚡️ Japanese Cabinet Schedules State Funeral of Former Prime Minister Abe for Sept 27 - Reports

The Japanese government has scheduled the state funeral of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe for September 27, media reported on Friday.

According to the Kyodo news agency, the ceremony will take place at the Nippon Budokan arena in the Kitanomaru National Garden in Tokyo.

Abe was attacked July 8 in the Japanese city of Nara during his campaign speech. Tetsuya Yamagami, 41, approached the politician from behind and fired two shots from a distance of about 10 meters (33 feet). The attacker reportedly plotted the assassination of the 67-year-old former head of government for nearly a year.

💵 DeSantis issues a $450-per-child check to 'offset the costs of rising inflation' for Florida families

Gov. Ron DeSantis' administration on Thursday announced he's reallocating some COVID-19 relief funds and sending $450 check directly to struggling families in the state.

To fund the checks, the governor has set aside $35.5 million from the $1 billion the state received from the American Rescue Plan Act, according to an announcement from Casey DeSantis, Florida's first lady.

The Florida Department of Children and Families said it expected about 59,000 families to receive at least one check, and, like other COVID-19 relief funds, there's no application.

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🏘 The chance of a US recession in the next 12 months is a 'coin flip,' says Mortgage Bankers Association

The Mortgage Bankers Association revised its US economy outlook lower and puts the chances of a recession over the next 12 months at 50%, with the most likely timing being in the first half of 2023," MBA economists said in a news release following its July 2022 Economic Forecast. 

The MBA lowered its growth rate for 2022 to 0.6%, compared to last month's forecast of 1.6%. "We expect inflation to end the year at around 6% before declining to a 2% to 2.5% range in 2023 and 2024," the MBA noted.

Home sales, meanwhile, will see a decline of about 8%, the MBA forecasted. In the economists' words: "Higher mortgage rates have reduced the pace of home sales, and now with the prospect of a weaker economy and an elevated risk of recession, potential homebuyers have pulled back even more."

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⚖️ A former Coinbase executive is among 3 charged in the first-ever crypto insider trading scheme

The US Attorney's Office in Manhattan alleged that the former Coinbase employee tipped off his brother and a friend on assets before they were going to be listed on Coinbase, which isn't implicated in any wrongdoing.

Ishan Wahi, the former Coinbase executive, as well as Nikhil Wahi and Sameer Ramani now face charges of wire fraud and insider trading. The Securities and Exchange Commission also filed a separate insider trading complaint against them.

The Justice Department alleged Ishan Wahi tipped off his brother and Ramani at least 14 times on asset listings before they appeared publicly, allowing them to make at least $1.5 million in total on at least 25 crypto assets due to insider information.

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Republican New York gubernatorial candidate Lee Zeldin was assaulted during a speech at a campaign event in Perinton, Monroe County in New York. An as yet unidentified man got up on the stage with a knife and lunged at Zeldin. However, the candidate grabbed the assailant by the wrist thereby preventing him from attacking. The suspect is in custody now and the investigation of the attack continues

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⚡️ Iran's withdrawal from nuclear commitments does not mean Tehran is developing nuclear weapons, IAEA says

⚡️ The Russian government has expanded its list of "unfriendly" foreign countries, adding Greece, Denmark, Slovenia, Croatia and Slovakia

⚡️ The list applies to people who stay on Russian soil with whom diplomatic missions of unfriendly countries, and their consular offices, can conclude their employment contract.

Slovenia and Croatia will not be able to hire staff for their diplomatic missions

📹 Russia's Ministry of Defense has published footage showing combat work of the TOS-1 heavy flamethrower system

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Watch: Footage of Russian fighter jets during the special operation in Ukraine

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📌 Here are the key points of the article by Russia's Foreign Minister Lavrov about the prospects for Russian-African relations as he prepares for his visit to African countries:

▪️Russia stands for strengthening Africa's position in a multipolar world, "welcoming the development of such structures as the African Union, the East African Community" and others;

▪️The relations between Africa and Russia don't depend on the political situation;

▪️Russia has always supported African countries "in their struggle for liberation from colonial oppression", has respected "the inalienable right of African countries to determine their own development paths";

▪️Russia appreciates the "balanced position of Africans" regarding the situation in Ukraine and respects the different countries' independent foreign policy on the issue;

▪️Russia will fulfill its obligations under international contracts that it has assumed regarding the export of food, fertilizers, energy, and other vital goods to Africa against the background of "Russia's hunger export" which is groundless propaganda from the West and Ukraine

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📹Sputnik footage from the hall where documents on the grain issue will be signed

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Since October, more than 326,000 illegal migrants have been detained by the US Customs and Border Protection - almost 120 percent more than in the same period a year earlier - leading Maverick County Sheriff Tom Schmerber to describe the situation as going “from worse to real bad”.

Schmerber has thanked Republican Governor of Texas Greg Abbott, who sent thousands of state police officers and National Guard soldiers to support federal and local law enforcement agencies struggling with human resources, while slamming the Biden administration for its inaction.

🗣 "I'm a Democrat, but I'm disappointed," Schmerber said. "The Governor of Texas [Greg Abbott], he's a Republican, but he's been helping us a lot. He took action."

The sheriff noted that it seems as though the Biden administration is not interested or concerned and now the situation is "out of control". According to Schmerber, the only way to stop the border crisis is to take measures “by doing something such as a zero tolerance [policy]” referring to the Trump administration's restrictions on illegal immigration

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⚡US issues license to allow swaps auction on Russian bonds, Treasury says

❗Guterres urges all sides to spare no effort to implement their commitments under newly reached grain deal