Day: September 24, 2023

Italian Mafia boss Matteo Messina Denaro, who was arrested in January after spending 30 years on the run, has died, ANSA news agency reported on Monday.

Messina Denaro, 61, was suffering from cancer at the time of his arrest. As his condition worsened in recent weeks he was transferred to a hospital from the maximum-security prison in central Italy where he was initially held.

Denaro had requested no aggressive medical treatment, ANSA reported, adding that medics had stopped feeding him after he was declared to be in irreversible coma.

He was convicted of numerous crimes, including for his role in planning the 1992 murders of anti-mafia prosecutors Giovanni Falcone and Paolo Borsellino – crimes that shocked Italy and sparked a crackdown on the Sicilian mob.

He was also held responsible for bombings in Rome, Florence and Milan in 1993 that killed 10 people, as well as helping organise the kidnapping of Giuseppe Di Matteo, 12, to try to dissuade the boy’s father from giving evidence against the mafia. The boy was held for two years, then murdered.

Dubbed by the Italian press as “the last Godfather”, Messina Denaro is not believed to have given any information to the police after he was seized outside a private health clinic in the Sicilian capital, Palermo, on Jan. 16.

According to medical records leaked to the Italian media, he underwent surgery for colon cancer in 2020 and 2022 under a false name. A doctor at the Palermo clinic told La Repubblica newspaper that Messina Denaro’s health had worsened significantly in the months leading up to his capture.

The son of a mafioso, Messina Denaro was born in the southwestern Sicilian town of Castelvetrano in 1962. He followed his father into the mob and at 15 was already carrying a gun. Police say he carried out his first killing when he was 18.

The Castelvetrano clan was allied to the Corleonesi, led by Salvatore “the Beast” Riina, who became the undisputed “boss of bosses” of the Sicilian mob, known as Cosa Nostra (Our Thing), thanks to his ruthless pursuit of power.

Nicknamed “‘U Siccu” (The Skinny One), Messina Denaro became his protege and showed he could be just as pitiless as his master, picking up 20 life prison terms in trials held in absentia for his role in an array of mob murders.

He himself once claimed to have murdered enough people to fill a cemetery.

He went into hiding in 1993 as a growing number of turncoats started providing details of his role in the mob, but investigators believe he rarely wandered far from Sicily.

Police say he spent much of 2022 hiding in Campobello di Mazara, a town of about 11,000, a short drive from his mother’s house in western Sicily.

He communicated with other mafiosi via “pizzini”, small pieces of paper sometimes written in code distributed by messengers, some of which were intercepted by police.

He never married, but was known to have a number of lovers. Denaro wrote that he had a daughter, but had never met her.

Despite his notoriety, prosecutors have always doubted that Messina Denaro became the Mafia “boss of bosses”, saying it was more likely that he was simply the head of Cosa Nostra in western Sicily.

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Union leaders and Hollywood studios reached a tentative agreement Sunday to end a historic screenwriters strike after nearly five months, though no deal is yet in the works for striking actors.

The Writers Guild of America announced the deal in a statement.

The three-year contract agreement — settled on after five marathon days of renewed talks by negotiators for the Writers Guild of America and an alliance of studios, streaming services and production companies — must be approved by the guild’s board and members before the strike officially ends.

The terms of the deal were not immediately announced. The tentative deal to end the last writers strike, in 2008, was approved by more than 90% of members.

As a result of the agreement, nightly network shows including NBC’s “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon” and ABC’s “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” could return to the air within days.

But as writers prepare to potentially crack open their laptops again, it’s far from back to business as usual in Hollywood, as talks have not yet resumed between studios and striking actors. Crew members left with no work by the stoppage will remain unemployed for now.

The proposed solution to the writers strike comes after talks resumed on Wednesday or the first time in a month. Chief executives including Bob Iger of Disney, Ted Sarandos of Netflix, David Zaslav of Warner Bros. Discovery and Donna Langley of NBCUniversal reportedly took part in the negotiations directly.

About 11,500 members of the Writers Guild of America walked off the job May 2 over issues of pay, the size of writing staffs on shows and the use of artificial intelligence in the creation of scripts. Actors, who joined the writers on strike in July, have their own issues but there have been no discussions about resuming negotiations with their union yet.

The writers strike immediately sent late-night talk shows and “Saturday Night Live” into hiatus, and has since sent dozens of scripted shows and other productions into limbo, including forthcoming seasons of Netflix’s “Stranger Things,” HBO’s “The Last of Us,” and ABC’s “Abbot Elementary,” and films including “Deadpool 3” and “Superman: Legacy.” The Emmy Awards were also pushed from September to January.

More recently, writers had been targeting talk shows that were working around strike rules to return to air, including “The Drew Barrymore Show,” “Real Time With Bill Maher” and “The Talk.” All reversed course in the face of picketing and pressure and are likely to quickly return now.

The combined strikes made for a pivotal moment in Hollywood as creative labor faced off against executives in a business transformed and torn by technology, from the seismic shift to streaming in recent years to the potentially paradigm-shifting emergence of AI in the years to come.

Screenwriters had traditionally gone on strike more than any other segment of the industry but had enjoyed a relatively long stretch of labor peace until spring negotiations for a new contract fell apart. The walkout was their first since 2007 and their longest since 1988.

On July 14, more than two months into the strike, the writers got a dose of solidarity and star power — along with a whole lot of new picketing partners — when they were joined by 65,000 striking film and television actors.

It was the first time the two groups had been on strike together since 1960. In that walkout, the writers strike started first and ended second. This time, studios opted to deal with the writers first.

The Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, the group that represents employers in negotiations, first reached out to suggest renewing negotiations in August. The meetings were short, infrequent, and not productive, and talks went silent for another month.

Megan Rapinoe got a triumphant send-off, and the United States beat South Africa 2-0 on Sunday.

Trinity Rodman and Emily Sonnett scored, and the U.S. sent its captain toward retirement with one final victory as a member of the national team.

The 38-year-old Rapinoe was presented a framed jersey representing her 203 games with the United States prior to the win, and she raised her arms as the crowd roared.

Rodman gave the U.S. more to celebrate when she drilled the ball into the net off a cross from Alex Morgan in the 18th minute. Rapinoe was the first to hug her.

Sonnett made it 2-0 with a header in the 49th minute and then jumped into Rapinoe’s arms. Rapinoe came close to scoring but missed just high on a free kick. She exited the international stage for one final time to a standing ovation in the 54th minute, kissing and hugging her teammates and blowing a kiss to the crowd and bowing.

Rapinoe announced in July that she was retiring after an illustrious career that included a pair of World Cup championships as well as gold and bronze medals in the Olympics and countless victory poses with her feet together and arms raised wide as she grinned ear to ear. She used her platform make an impact beyond the pitch, fighting for equal pay and social justice.

In recent weeks, she’s been showing her emotions.

Rapinoe let them flow following the U.S. loss to Sweden at this summer’s Women’s World Cup, knowing it would be her last tournament with the national team. She did it again last weekend, when she played her final rivalry match between her NWSL team, OL Reign, and the Portland Thorns.

Rapinoe still has a few more regular-season games for the Reign, including a send-off match for local fans in Seattle on Oct. 6, before her career comes to an end. And what a remarkable career it has been.

She entered her final match for the United States with 63 goals, including two directly from corner kicks at the Olympics. At the 2019 World Cup in France, she scored six goals and took home the Golden Ball as top player.

Besides establishing herself as one of the best to play the game, she led the long fight for equal pay with the men’s national team.

Rapinoe, who came out publicly in 2012 and got engaged to basketball star Sue Bird in 2020, is outspoken about LGBTQ issues, including transgender rights. In 2022, President Joe Biden made her the first soccer player awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation’s highest civilian honor.

She showed solidarity with former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick in the fight for racial equity by kneeling during the national anthem. U.S. Soccer responded by implementing a rule that players must stand for anthems that was rescinded in 2021.

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Union leaders and Hollywood studios reached a tentative agreement Sunday to end a historic screenwriters strike after nearly five months, though no deal is yet in the works for striking actors.

The Writers Guild of America announced the deal in a joint statement with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, the group that represents studios, streaming services and production companies in negotiations.

“WGA has reached a tentative agreement with the AMPTP,” the guild said in an email to members. “This was made possible by the enduring solidarity of WGA members and extraordinary support of our union siblings who joined us on the picket lines for over 146 days.”

The three-year contract agreement — settled on after five marathon days of renewed talks by negotiators WGA and the AMPTP — must be approved by the guild’s board and members before the strike officially ends.

In a longer message from the guild shared by members on social media, the writers were told the strike is not over and no one was to return to work until hearing otherwise, but picketing is to be suspended immediately.

The terms of the deal were not immediately announced. The tentative deal to end the last writers strike, in 2008, was approved by more than 90% of members.

The agreement comes just five days before the strike would’ve become the longest in the guild’s history, and the longest Hollywood strike more than 70 years.

As a result of the agreement, nightly network shows including NBC’s “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon” and ABC’s “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” could return to the air within days.

But as writers prepare to potentially crack open their laptops again, it’s far from back to business as usual in Hollywood, as talks have not yet resumed between studios and the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists. Crew members left with no work by the stoppage will remain unemployed for now.

“SAG-AFTRA congratulates the WGA on reaching a tentative agreement with the AMPTP after 146 days of incredible strength, resiliency and solidarity on the picket lines,” the actors union said in a statement. “While we look forward to reviewing the WGA and AMPTP’s tentative agreement, we remain committed to achieving the necessary terms for our members.”

The statement said the guild continues “to urge the studio and streamer CEOs and the AMPTP to return to the table and make the fair deal that our members deserve and demand.”

The proposed solution to the writers strike came after talks resumed on Wednesday or the first time in a month. Chief executives including Bob Iger of Disney, Ted Sarandos of Netflix, David Zaslav of Warner Bros. Discovery and Donna Langley of NBCUniversal reportedly took part in the negotiations directly.

It was reached without the intervention of federal mediators or other government officials, which had been necessary in previous strikes.

Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass issued a statement congratulating the two sides on the deal and said she is hopeful the same can happen soon with actors.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom did the same, saying writers “went on strike over existential threats to their careers and livelihoods — expressing real concerns over the stress and anxiety workers are feeling. I am grateful that the two sides have come together.”

About 11,500 members of the Writers Guild of America walked off the job May 2 over issues of pay, the size of writing staffs on shows and the use of artificial intelligence in the creation of scripts. Actors, who joined the writers on strike in July, have their own issues but there have been no discussions about resuming negotiations with their union yet.

The writers strike immediately sent late-night talk shows and “Saturday Night Live” into hiatus, and has since sent dozens of scripted shows and other productions into limbo, including forthcoming seasons of Netflix’s “Stranger Things,” HBO’s “The Last of Us,” and ABC’s “Abbot Elementary,” and films including “Deadpool 3” and “Superman: Legacy.” The Emmy Awards were also pushed from September to January.

More recently, writers had been targeting talk shows that were working around strike rules to return to air, including “ The Drew Barrymore Show,” “ Real Time With Bill Maher ” and “The Talk.” All reversed course in the face of picketing and pressure, and are likely to quickly return now.

The combined strikes made for a pivotal moment in Hollywood as creative labor faced off against executives in a business transformed and torn by technology, from the seismic shift to streaming in recent years to the potentially paradigm-shifting emergence of AI in the years to come.

Screenwriters had traditionally gone on strike more than any other segment of the industry, but had enjoyed a relatively long stretch of labor peace until spring negotiations for a new contract fell apart. The walkout was their first since 2007 and their longest since 1988.

On July 14, more than two months into the strike, the writers got a dose of solidarity and star power — along with a whole lot of new picketing partners — when they were joined by 65,000 striking film and television actors.

It was the first time the two groups had been on strike together since 1960. In that walkout, the writers strike started first and ended second. This time, studios opted to deal with the writers first.

The AMPTP first reached out to suggest renewing negotiations in August. The meetings were short, infrequent, and not productive, and talks went silent for another month.

The leader of Azerbaijan’s Nakhchivan exclave has resigned, ceding control over a fiefdom he has ruled for almost three decades.

Known for running the most repressive corner of authoritarian Azerbaijan, 62-year-old Vasif Talibov cited health issues, though rumors had been circulating for weeks that the central government in Baku wanted greater control. 

Talibov signed his resignation letter on December 21. Local lawmakers swiftly approved his departure as chairman of the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic of Azerbaijan – a region long known by Baku activists as their country’s own “North Korea.” 

Isolated Nakhchivan is physically separated from the rest of Azerbaijan by a stretch of Armenia. It also boasts Azerbaijan’s only border crossing with close ally Turkey

Few outsiders are able to visit the territory, which Talibov took over in 1995, when he was appointed by a relative, Heydar Aliyev, the father of the current president. 

“Talibov’s rule has left the society with little hope, while widespread poverty and a high unemployment rate have had a dramatic negative impact on living conditions. The authoritarian rule and the destruction of civil society has been reinforced by strict censorship and grave human rights abuses,” said the Norwegian Helsinki Committee in 2009, one of the last times independent monitors were able to report from the territory. 

Early this year, an investigation by the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project found that Talibov’s sons Rza and Seymur had squirreled away $20 million in foreign bank accounts. Officially, Rza is a low-ranking official and Seymur is a member of the Nakhchivan parliament. In an accompany article, OCCRP said Talibov ruled Nakhchivan “through fear and violence,” chronicling some recent abuses and noting that the population appears to have fallen dramatically in recent years because residents, fearful and jobless, are fleeing for Baku and Turkey. 

Talibov’s downfall began to appear imminent last month. In late November, Azerbaijan’s State Security Service (SSS) arrested a senior customs official in the region; though arrests of high-ranking officials for corruption are not unusual in Azerbaijan, a few days later President Ilham Aliyev ordered the local customs committee dismantled and its duties assumed by Azerbaijan’s State Customs Committee. Earlier in the month Baku had also taken control of the region’s security services.

Talibov departs as Azerbaijan and Armenia appear deadlocked over the status of Nagorno-Karabakh, Azerbaijani territory that has been controlled by ethnic Armenians since a war in the early 1990s. Karabakh, like Nakhchivan, had some autonomy under Soviet rule. While Aliyev had offered Armenians autonomy before the war, he withdrew that offer during a 2020 war, when Azerbaijan retook most of the Armenian-held territories.

Political analyst Sulhaddin Akbar, in a December 8 interview, told BBC Azerbaijani that “new realities [had] emerged in the region” following the 2020 war and predicted that Baku would take greater control of Nakhchivan. He called the territory’s autonomous status “legal nonsense,” asking: “How can there be another state inside a state?” 

Another commentator, however, predicts Nakhchivan’s status will not change. Writing on Facebook, Azer Gasimli, an independent politician, said he believes Ilham Aliyev and his wife Mehriban simply want more power and economic assets: “Today, a new era has begun in Azerbaijan. The process started after the 2016 referendum and ended today – the process of replacing the oligarchic system with a one-man system and family autocracy.”