China’s Stock Market Just Had Its Worst Monthly Drop In 6 Years

China’s Stock Market Just Had Its Worst Monthly Drop In 6 Years

The country's economic woes continue

China’s stock market fell again on Friday, with The Shanghai Composite Index slipping 1.1% to close at 3,663.73, according to a report in Bloomberg News.

The loss brings to an end the worst month for stocks in China since August of 2009, when China was still reeling from a global financial panic and recession that caused massive losses in financial markets around the world.

For the month of July, the Shanghai Composite Index fell a total of 15%, despite unprecedented state intervention aimed at calming markets. According to Bloomberg, the losses on Friday started “after Reuters reported that Chinese regulators had asked financial institutions in Singapore and Hong Kong for stock-trading records as part of efforts to track down investors betting against shares in China.”

U.K. Government Grants Ai Weiwei 6-Month Visa

U.K. Government Grants Ai Weiwei 6-Month Visa

Chinese artist Ai Weiwei leaves the Franz-Josef-Strauss airport in Munich, southern Germany, after his arrival from China on July 30, 2015.

The British government reportedly apologized to Ai in writing "for the inconvenience caused"

(LONDON) — Britain says it is granting dissident Chinese artist Ai Weiwei a six-month visa, apologizing for rejecting his application over an alleged criminal conviction.

On Thursday Ai disclosed that the British embassy in Beijing had turned down his request for a business visa, saying he had failed to disclose a criminal conviction. It gave him a visit for 20 days instead.

Ai was jailed for almost three months in 2011 amid a crackdown on dissent. His company was later accused of tax evasion and ordered to pay $2.4 million. Ai’s lawyer said that was not a criminal case.

Britain’s Home Office said Friday that Home Secretary Theresa May had told officials to grant the six-month visa. It said it had written to Ai “apologizing for the inconvenience caused.”

This Is the World’s Hottest City Today

This Is the World’s Hottest City Today

Displaced Iraqis carry donated food at al-Takia refugee camp in Baghdad on July 30, 2015.

The mercury hit 120 degrees Fahrenheit in Baghdad, and it feels even hotter

Tens of millions of Americans have been suffering under a blistering heatwave this week, with temperatures reaching into the high 90s. But they won’t get any sympathy from the people of Baghdad.

The Iraqi capital was the hottest city on the planet Friday — with the mercury hitting an unbearable 120 degrees Fahrenheit, according to The Weather Channel. And it has felt as hot as 159 degrees.

While many in the U.S. would not tolerate the summer season without air conditioning, people in the Iraqi capital say they have to put up with as little as six hours of electricity per day…

Cincinnati campus policeman Ray Tensing pleads not guilty to black motorist Samuel Dubose's murder released from jail on bail

A police officer charged with murder over the shooting death of an unarmed black man has been released from jail on bond, a court says.

Ray Tensing, 25, was released hours after pleading not guilty over the death of 43-year-old Samuel DuBose, who was shot in the head after he was pulled over for a missing licence plate.

An Ohio judge set a bond of $1 million for Tensing's release.

The former University of Cincinnati officer, who turned himself in and spent the night in jail in isolation, appeared in court in striped grey prison clothes before Hamilton County Court of Common Pleas Judge Megan Shanahan in Cincinnati.

The Cincinnati courtroom's gallery erupted as Judge Shanahan set the bail, and she ordered them to stop.

"Ladies and gentlemen, this is a courtroom. You will conduct yourselves at all times appropriately," she said.

The officer was indicted on murder and voluntary manslaughter charges in the July 19 death of Samuel DuBose.

A body-camera video worn by Tensing showed the officer shooting the victim in the head as he sat behind his car's steering wheel.

After failing to provide a driver's licence at Tensing's request, Mr DuBose tried to prevent Tensing from opening the car door as the officer ordered him to remove his seat belt.

The car started slowly rolling forward as Tensing reached in and yelled for him to stop. The officer pulled his gun and fired once, killing Mr DuBose.

Hamilton County prosecutor Joseph Deters said Tensing was not dragged by the car, as the officer had reported, but instead fell backwards after shooting Mr DuBose in the head.

Mr Deters said Tensing should have let Mr DuBose drive away.

Tensing was fired by university police on Wednesday.

If convicted, he will face a maximum penalty of life in prison.

His attorney, Stew Mathews, said Tensing had feared for his life during the altercation with Mr DuBose, so he drew his weapon.

"He's feeling like he's been run over by a train," Mathews added.

He said earlier it was possible Tensing's family could raise the 10 per cent of the bond needed to release him from custody.

Mr DuBose's sister, Terina Allen, urged the community not to respond to her brother's death with violence.

She said the video evidence from Tensing proved her brother was a peaceful man.

"Sam would have never did to that police officer what that police officer did to Sam," Ms Allen said.

Mr Deters said his office was investigating a second officer who had backed Tensing's version of the traffic stop.

The University of Cincinnati has confirmed two of its police officers have been placed on administrative since the incident.

The incident was the latest in a series of fatal police confrontations in the United States that have raised questions about police use of force against minorities.

The next court date has been set for August 19.

Cecil the lion: Zimbabwe calls on US to extradite trophy hunter Walter Palmer

Zimbabwe says the US dentist who killed Cecil the lion financed an illegal hunt and should be extradited to face justice.

Zimbabwean environment minister Oppah Muchinguri said Walter Palmer was a "foreign poacher", adding that the country's prosecutor-general had started the process to have him extradited from the United States.

"We are appealing to the responsible authorities for his extradition to Zimbabwe so that he can be held accountable for his illegal action," she said.

Mr Palmer has admitted killing the 13-year-old predator, a favourite with foreign tourists and the subject of an Oxford University study, but said he had hired professional guides and believed all the necessary hunting permits were in order.

Mr Muchinguri also said Mr Palmer's use of a bow and arrow to kill the lion, who is said to have been lured out of Hwange National Park with bait before being shot, was in contravention of Zimbabwean hunting regulations.

Mr Palmer, a life-long big game hunter, managed to return to the United States before the authorities were aware of the controversy around Cecil's death.

"It was too late to apprehend the foreign poacher because he had already absconded to his country of origin," Mr Muchinguri said.

The killing has sparked social media outrage against Mr Palmer.

The White House said on Thursday it would review a public petition of more than 100,000 signatures to have him extradited.

MH17: Julie Bishop says Russian veto of proposed UN-backed tribunal to prosecute suspects 'compounds atrocity'

Julie Bishop says Russian veto of proposed UN-backed tribunal to prosecute suspects 'compounds atrocity'

Russia's veto of a United Nations Security Council draft resolution to prosecute those suspected of downing the Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 in Ukraine "compounds the atrocity", Foreign Minister Julie Bishop says.

Efforts to lobby and cajole Moscow's representatives fell on deaf ears, despite the fact the measure passed with the overwhelming majority of the council only for Russia to exercise its veto option as a permanent member.

Eleven countries on the 15-member council voted in favour of the proposal by Malaysia, Australia, the Netherlands and Ukraine, while three countries abstained: China, Angola and Venezuela.

Ms Bishop, who has spent the past 24 hours at UN headquarters in New York lobbying hard for a UN-backed tribunal, said Russia's decision should be treated with the "utmost disdain".

"In a world with an increasing number of violent terrorist groups and other non-state actors, many with sophisticated military capabilities, it is inconceivable that the Security Council would now walk away from holding to account those who brought down a commercial aeroplane," she told the UN assembly.

"The veto only compounds the atrocity. Only one hand was raised in opposition, but a veto should never be allowed to deny justice.

"The recital of discredited contentions and the anticipated excuses and obfuscation by the Russian Federation should be treated with the utmost disdain."

Russia's UN ambassador, Vitaly Churkin, said it was premature to set up an international tribunal, saying there were "no grounds" for a tribunal as the crash was "not a threat to international security".

He said the draft resolution was submitted for a vote by Malaysia and its co-sponsors with the knowledge it would be vetoed.

"This in our view indicates the fact that political purposes were more important for them than practical objectives. This of course is regrettable," Mr Churkin said.

"Russia stands ready to cooperate in the conduct of a full, independent and objective investigation of the reasons and circumstances of the crash."

Earlier, Ms Bishop tweeted a picture of representatives of the joint investigative team saying they were "united and resolved to obtain justice".

"Those who perished aboard MH17 were precious, each one mourned by heartbroken families and friends, she said.

"Their loss is incalculable, their grief inconsolable.

"They are desperate for answers. It is vital for them that the deaths of their cherished ones are held to account for those actions."

PHOTO: Members of a group of international experts inspect wreckage at the site where the downed Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 crashed, near the village of Hrabove in Donetsk region of eastern Ukraine on August 1, 2014. 

The Security Council session began with a moment's silence in honour of those killed in the July 2014 disaster.

Flight MH17 was shot down with 298 passengers on board, two-thirds of them Dutch. It crashed in Ukrainian territory held by Russian-backed separatists.

Thirty-eight Australian citizens and residents were killed onboard the flight from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur.

Malaysia, Australia, the Netherlands, Belgium and Ukraine are conducting a criminal inquiry into the flight's downing.

Separately, the Dutch Safety Board, supported by the Australian Federal Police, is due to report its findings in October, but investigators have stressed it will only address the cause, not those responsible.

Kiev and the West point the finger at the separatists, saying they may have used a BUK surface-to-air missile supplied by Russia to down the plane.

Moscow has rejected accusations it supplied the rebels with missile systems.

Russia had proposed its own rival draft resolution, which pushed for a greater UN role in an investigation into what caused the downing of the aircraft and demanded justice, but it would not have set up a tribunal.

Malaysia's transport minister told the meeting the killings were "senseless" and urged the council to take "decisive action against those responsible".

"We will continue to hope and advocate for this resolution today. Should that not be achieved, the joint investigation team will continue in our resolve to obtain justice for the families and we will come up with an alternative mechanism."

The US ambassador to the UN, Samantha Power, told the council "no veto will stand in the way of this heinous crime being investigated and prosecuted".

"Efforts to deny justice only intensify the pain of the victims' families, who have already endured more than any of us can fathom," she said.

"It is the effect of Russia's veto today."

On July 21, 2014, the Security Council unanimously adopted a resolution that demanded those responsible "be held to account and that all states cooperate fully with efforts to establish accountability".

There are reports the Netherlands may resubmit the tribunal proposal to a future Security Council meeting or launch criminal cases through its own court system.

Benghazi: Hillary Clinton to appear before US House committee in October over 2012 Libya attack

Hillary Clinton to appear before US House committee in October over 2012 Libya attack

Former secretary of state Hillary Clinton will testify before the US House of Representatives committee investigating the 2012 attacks in Benghazi, Libya, in October, the committee says.

"Secretary Clinton's attorney, Mr David Kendall, late today confirmed she has accepted the select committee's offer to appear before the committee, which will take place October 22nd," the committee said in a statement.

Mrs Clinton, the front-runner for the Democratic presidential nomination, will be questioned about the attacks, in which four Americans were killed, and her use of a private email account while she was secretary of state, the committee said.

The US's ambassador to Libya Chris Stevens and three other officials, including elite Navy SEALs, were killed in an attack on the consulate.

Gunmen attacked the consulate using home-made bombs and rocket-propelled grenades before looting and setting fire to the building.

Mr Stevens was being driven to a safer location when his car was hit by a rocket.

Republicans have criticised Mrs Clinton over her handling of the incident saying she failed to take adequate steps to ensure the safety of American diplomatic personnel.

In her memoir Hard Choices, Mrs Clinton dismissed the criticism as exploiting a tragedy for political gain.

Mrs Clinton's electronic correspondence has been the focus of controversy since her admission in March that she had used a private account for all her email correspondence while secretary of state between 2009 and 2013.

Republican rivals contend that Mrs Clinton used the private account in order to keep it out of the public record.

But she has argued that as of late 2014, she had sent 55,000 printed pages from roughly 30,000 emails to officials who will archive the data and make it available to the public, as is required by law.

The remainder of the messages were deemed personal by Mrs Clinton and were deleted from her private server, she and her lawyers have said.

The State Department announced it intended to make the entirety of the archive public after purging it of classified or confidential information.

Ex-Top Gear star Jeremy Clarkson to host new car show on Amazon with Richard Hammond, James May

Former Top Gear host Jeremy Clarkson has signed a deal with Amazon to present a new motoring show alongside his former co-presenters Richard Hammond and James May.

Clarkson was fired from the BBC for physically attacking a member of Top Gear's production staff in March.

Despite being shocked at the broadcaster's decision not to renew his contract, Clarkson had said he was confident he would do another car show eventually.

Amazon said the new show, to be overseen by the trio's long-time executive producer Andy Wilman, will be available on its subscription streaming service Amazon Prime next year and will run for three seasons.

It gave no further details of the as-yet unnamed show.

Clarkson, 55, was replaced as lead presenter of the globally popular Top Gear show — aired in more than 200 countries and watched by 350 million viewers worldwide — by television presenter and DJ Chris Evans.

Clarkson had generated both controversy and profits for Britain's publicly-funded broadcaster, and had been on a final warning over accusations last year he had used racist language while filming the show.

Last October, the show sparked a diplomatic incident between Britain and Argentina, which went to war in 1982 over the Falkland Islands.

A Top Gear television crew was forced to flee Argentina after driving a Porsche 928 GT with the registration number H982 FKL, which some people suggested could have referred to the Falklands conflict.

Washington D.C. Is Sinking Into the Ocean

Washington D.C. Is Sinking Into the Ocean

The skyline of Washington, DC, including the Lincoln Memorial, Washington Monument, US Capitol and National Mall, is seen from the air at sunset in this photograph taken on June 15, 2014.

All the political gridlock in Congress and name-calling during election season may not matter as much when Washington, D.C. sinks into the ocean.

According to new researchconducted by geologists at the University of Vermont and the U.S. Geological Survey, the land in the Chesapeake Bay region, including the nation’s capital, is sinking rapidly. The sea level in the Chesapeake is rising at twice the global average and faster than anywhere else on the East Coast, the researchers say, which means D.C. will sink 6 or more inches in the next 100 years.

The sinking is caused by melting ice sheets which caused underlying rock to bulge upward. As the ice melts, the rock bulge drops. Scientists say this will cause more flooding in the region, which is already getting worse from global warming.

“Right now is the time to start making preparations,” said Ben DeJong, lead author of the study, in a University of Vermont press release. “Six extra inches of water really matters in this part of the world.”

There’s a New Way to Predict West Nile Virus Outbreaks

There’s New Way to Predict West Nile Virus Outbreaks

Scientists are working on a promising new model

It’s peak mosquito season in the United States, which means the risk for the mosquito-borne West Nile is up. According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the agency sees the most cases of the disease between June and September

As of July 21, 2015, the CDC reports that 33 states have reported West Nile in people, mosquitoes or animals and there have been 23 cases of West Nile in humans. Though many people with West Nile will not develop symptoms, the disease can cause inflammation of the brain or inflammation of the lining of the brain and spinal chord. Only about 1% of people will develop neurological illness from the virus. Unfortunately there are no drugs or vaccines for West Nile. Cases have been reported in every state except for Alaska and Hawaii.

Given the fact that there’s no cure or vaccine for West Nile, being able to predict when and where the disease could spread in the U.S. before it happens would be a boon for public health experts, and researchers are getting closer to that possibility. In May, scientists at the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) published their recent findings that showed links between the weather and incidence of West Nile virus nationwide