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Showing posts from June, 2019

HK billionaire to pay $14m in tuition fees for Chinese students

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Hong Kong's richest man Li Ka-Shing has pledged to pay the tuition fees for a class of Chinese university students through his charitable foundation. The Li Ka-Shing Foundation will fund Shantou University's 2019 incoming class for up to five years. Mr Li, aged 90, is worth $30.4bn (£24.2bn) according to Forbes. Last month billionaire Robert F Smith made a similar move, saying he would pay the loans of a US college class. The Li Ka-Shing Foundation will cover full tuition for four to five years for undergraduates, starting with the incoming class of 2019 at Shantou University, in the Guangdong province of China. The move will cost 100m Chinese yuan ($14.4m; £11.5m) a year. "The Foundation hopes this scheme can alleviate financial burdens for families and encourage the pursuit of personal interests and further learning to better prepare graduates for the challenges of an increasingly complex global economy," the foundation said in a statement. 'Super
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Oxford University accepts £150m from US private equity boss

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The largest single donation to a UK university has been given to Oxford for a new institute that will study the ethics of artificial intelligence. Stephen Schwarzman, a US private equity billionaire who has advised Republican presidents including Donald Trump, has given the university £150m. The donation will fund a new faculty for the humanities. The UK government said it was a "globally significant" investment in Britain. Governments 'utterly unprepared' At a time when universities face uncertainty over research funding because of Brexit, this is a major financial coup for the University of Oxford. Mr Schwarzman, the chief executive of the private equity firm Blackstone, is one of America's best known billionaires. In the past, his lavish lifestyle as a Wall Street financier has attracted criticism, but more recently he has also become a major donor to education. Mr Schwarzman told the BBC he was giving the money to Oxford because artificial inte
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More than 70 million displaced worldwide, says UNHCR

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The number of people fleeing war, persecution and conflict exceeded 70 million globally last year - the highest number in the UN refugee agency's almost 70 years of operations. The almost 70.8 million people forcibly displaced is 2.3 million more than the previous year, according to the agency's annual Global Trends report. The figure is also double the level recorded 20 years ago. The number averaged out to 37,000 new displacements every day. "What we are seeing in these figures is further confirmation of a longer-term rising trend in the number of people needing safety from war, conflict and persecution," said the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, Filippo Grandi. "While language around refugees and migrants is often divisive, we are also witnessing an outpouring of generosity and solidarity, especially by communities who are themselves hosting large numbers of refugees." The number also represents a sharp increase in the number of displaced p
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Maurizio Sarri: Juventus appoint Chelsea manager

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Maurizio Sarri has left Chelsea to become manager of Serie A champions Juventus on a three-year deal. Sarri, who joined the Blues from Napoli in July 2018, led them to third in the Premier League and won the Europa League in his one season in charge. It is understood a compensation fee in excess of £5m has been agreed between the two clubs for the 60-year-old. Sarri will replace fellow Italian Massimiliano Allegri, who left Juventus at the end of last season. "In talks we had following the Europa League final, Maurizio made it clear how strongly he desired to return to his native country, explaining that his reasons for wanting to return to work in Italy were significant," said Chelsea director Marina Granovskaia. "He also believed it important to be nearer his family, and for the well-being of his elderly parents he felt he needed to live closer to them at this point." Sarri signed a three-year deal last July but now becomes the ninth full-time manager
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Ethiopia anger over texting and internet blackouts

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Ethiopians are angry that the country's text messaging service has been shut down since Thursday without any explanation. Internet blackouts, which began last Tuesday, are also still affecting many areas of the country. The state-run Ethio Telecom, the country's only telecoms provider, has refused to comment on the outages. The closure of the services coincides with nationwide exams, which some say may be the reason for the shut down. There has been speculation the measures are aimed at trying to stop students cheating, Kalkidan Yibeltal reports from the capital, Addis Ababa. The messaging app Telegram, which is popular among young Ethiopians, also remains inaccessible. The internet was shutdown in 2016 and 2017 to curb the leaking of exams amid popular anti-government protests. But when reformist Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed came into office last year he allowed more freedom of expression and previously banned websites were unbanned. This is the first time since he cam
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Anthony Joshua sensationally beaten by Andy Ruiz Jr at Madison Square Garden

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Andy Ruiz Jr produced one of the biggest shocks in the history of heavyweight boxing to rip Anthony Joshua's IBF, WBO and WBA world heavyweight titles from him and tear up the division's proposed plot lines. In a truly remarkable fight at New York's Madison Square Garden, Ruiz floored Joshua four times en route to a seventh-round stoppage, which stunned this famous arena and handed the Briton his first defeat as a professional. Joshua was a 1-25 favourite with bookmakers, with 22 wins - 21 by knockout - going into the fight. He will now join the likes of Lennox Lewis and Mike Tyson as dominant champions to suffer losses which brought the sport to a standstill. "I got beaten by a good fighter," said 29-year-old Joshua on Sky Sports. "It will be interesting to see how far he goes, but this is all part of the journey. "He's a champion for now, I shall return." This was no fluke, no punch from the ages, it was the breakdown of a fighter wh
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RIP. Jose Antonio Reyes: Former Arsenal winger dies aged 35

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Former Arsenal winger Jose Antonio Reyes has died in a car accident aged 35, Spanish club Sevilla have announced. "We couldn't be confirming worse news," the La Liga club said on Twitter. The Spaniard joined the Gunners from Sevilla in January 2004 and was part of the 'Invincibles' side that went through the 2003-04 season unbeaten, winning the Premier League. He later spent a season on loan at Real Madrid in 2006-07, winning the title. Sevilla paid tribute to the "eternal legend", adding that he was "one of the most valuable home grown players in the history of the club". Flags in Reyes' hometown of Utrera will fly at half mast for the next two days, according to a statement on the city council website. The statement also revealed the accident happened on a road linking Utrera with Seville and a relative of Reyes was also killed. Reyes' coffin will be taken to Sevilla's stadium on Sunday before being moved to Utrera
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Japan's gripping manhunt ends in capture

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Japanese police have captured a fugitive who had eluded authorities for weeks in a bizarre drama that gripped the country. Tatsuma Hirao, 27, had made a run for it from an open prison in the town of Imabari. Police deployed more than 6,000 officers on the small island of Mukaishima, using everything from dogs to helicopters and drones. He was caught at a train station in Hiroshima, about 50km (30 miles) away. Hirao was not considered a dangerous criminal. Serving five and a half years for theft, he was being held at a facility where inmates are free to walk about without walls or fences. The system did not work in the case of Hirao. The first clues following his getaway were on Mukaishima. On the face of it, the 57 sq km (22 sq mile) island of 22,000 people should not have been an easy place to hide. Yet despite using helicopters, sniffer dogs and drones, Hirao kept eluding his pursuers. All the police found were small clues: fingerprints, items like socks or mobil
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Woman trapped in billionaire's New York lift all weekend

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A woman has been rescued after spending an entire weekend trapped in her billionaire employer's lift, authorities said. The woman, reported to be 53-year-old Marites Fortaliza, entered the elevator at the Manhattan townhouse owned by investment banker Warren Stephens on Friday evening. Firefighters responded to an emergency call at 10:00 local time (15:00 GMT) on Monday and forced the lift open. Ms Fortaliza is recovering in hospital. According to a family statement reported by the Associated Press Ms Fortaliza was dehydrated but in a stable condition at Weill Cornell Medical Center. She has been "a valued member of the Stephens extended family for 18 years" and a family member accompanied her to the hospital, they are quoted as saying. Mr Stephens is the head of Stephens Inc, an investment bank based in Little Rock, Arkansas. Authorities said Ms Fortaliza was trapped between the second and third floors of the house, on the Upper East Side of the city nea
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Governor jailed for sexual assault

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A former South Korean governor and one-time presidential contender has been sentenced to three and a half years in prison for rape, five months after he was controversially acquitted for the same crime. Ahn Hee-jung was jailed by an appeals court Friday for the rape and assault of Kim Ji-eun, his former assistant, Kim's lawyer Jung Hye-sun told CNN. Speaking after the verdict, Kim thanked her lawyers and witnesses who supported her case. "I can say goodbye to my torturous time when I was forced to live feeling like a witch to be burnt," she said. "I'd like to share all the help I received with other victims who still have to prove everything in their lonely fights. I'd like to send my solidarity to all the victims of sexual crimes whether they spoke about their cases but were ignored or couldn't speak about their issues and quietly watched my trial." Kim came forward with the allegations during an interview with South Korean
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