Outgoing federal ethics chief: ‘We are pretty close to a laughingstock at this point’

The federal government’s top ethics chief is resigning on Wednesday. And he’s torching the Trump administration on his way out.

Walter M. Shaub Jr., director of the Office of Government Ethics, told the New York Times that President Trump’s apparent disdain for long-established ethical norms has undermined the credibility of the United States around the world.

“It’s hard for the United States to pursue international anticorruption and ethics initiatives when we’re not even keeping our own side of the street clean,” Shaub told the Times in an article published Monday. “I think we are pretty close to a laughingstock at this point.”

Shaub — who has been a vocal critic of Trump’s since his election — said the president’s frequent trips to his family-owned golf clubs are a microcosm of just how blurry the line between the White House and Trump brand has become.

“It creates the appearance of profiting from the presidency,” Shaub said. “Misuse of position is really the heart of the ethics program, and the internationally accepted definition of corruption is abuse of entrusted power. It undermines the government ethics program by casting doubt on the integrity of government decision making.”

Trump spent last weekend at another one of his golf courses, and repeatedly promoted the U.S. Women’s Open Championship held there.

GOP Sen. Heller receives threatening note over health care

Sen. Dean Heller, R-Nev., received a note at his Las Vegas office over the weekend that reportedly threatened the senator if he voted to take away the note writer’s health care.

The note writer said he would die from losing insurance if Heller backed the Republican plan — and that he would take Heller down with him if that happened, according to veteran reporter Jon Ralston at the Nevada Independent.

On Sunday morning, the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department was notified by an alarm company that Heller’s Las Vegas office had been broken into. The police department said in a statement that while the office was not burglarized, a “threatening note” addressed to Sen. Heller was left near his office’s door. The police said they would not disclose the contents of the note while the investigation was ongoing.

A spokeswoman for Heller, Megan Taylor, said she could not comment.

Justine Damond's fiance 'heartbroken' over police shooting

The "heartbroken" American fiancé of an Australian shot dead by a US police officer has said they have received almost no information from officials.

Don Damond said his wife-to-be, Justine Damond, was gunned down after calling police to report a possible sexual assault in their quiet neighbourhood.

He said they were "desperate" to find out how Saturday's shooting in Minneapolis, Minnesota, happened.

The officers' body cameras were not turned on at the time.

The shooting happened in a relatively affluent area, where violent crime is rare.

Mr Damond told a news conference outside his home on Monday evening: "Our hearts are broken and we are utterly devastated by the loss of Justine.

17-year Old Leads Gang To Rob A Foreigner At Gunpoint In Traffic

A teenage boy was on Monday arrested by the Police in East Legon for leading a robbery attack on a white businessman at the East Legon in Ghana.

According to Adom News, the 17-year-old identified as Sanusi Zibu and his accomplice Abdul Muhammad, 27, under the pretext of alerting the victim to check his flat tyre in heavy traffic gained access to him.

When the businessman stopped, the suspects reportedly pulled a gun on him and took away his bag which contained GHC 58,000 and $20,000.

Luck, however, ran out on them as they were escaping from the scene when a motorbike rider chased them, crossed their paths and knocked them.

This subsequently led to their arrest by the police.

Watch the video below...

Turkish court jails 6 human rights activists pending trial

A court in Istanbul ordered six human rights activists — including Amnesty International's Turkey director — formally arrested Tuesday pending a trial over accusations that they aided an armed terror group, adding to concerns over rights and freedoms in the country.

Four others activists were released from custody pending the outcome of a trial. They have been barred from traveling abroad and have to report regularly to police.

The group was detained earlier this month in a police raid at a hotel on Buyukada island where they were attending a training workshop on digital security.

They are suspected of "committing crime in the name of a terrorist organization without being a member."

Amnesty International described the court decision as a "crushing blow for rights in Turkey."

"This is not a legitimate investigation, this is a politically motivated witch-hunt that charts a frightening future for rights in Turkey," said Salil Shetty, Amnesty International's secretary general.

Qatar lashes out at UAE over QNA hacking

Qatar accused the United Arab Emirates on Monday of violating international law after reports suggested Abu Dhabi orchestrated the hacking of the Qatari official news agency and social media sites.

"The information published in the Washington Post ... revealed the involvement of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and senior Emirati officials in the hacking of Qatar News Agency," Qatar's government communication office said in a statement on Monday.

The report "unequivocally proves that this hacking crime took place", the statement quoted Sheikh Saif bin Ahmed Al Thani, director of the government communication office, as saying. 

"This criminal act represents a clear violation and breach of international law and of the bilateral and collective agreements signed between the member states of the Gulf Cooperation Council, as well as collective agreements with the Arab League, the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation, and the United Nations." 

The statement said that an investigation is ongoing and that government prosecutors plan to take "legal measures" locally and abroad.

Russia Jehovah's Witnesses banned after they lose appeal

Russia's Supreme Court has ordered the disbanding of the Jehovah's Witnesses on Russian territory.

The ban came into effect after the court rejected an appeal by the religious group against a ruling in April which declared it to be extremist.

The justice ministry had argued that the group distributed pamphlets which incited hatred against other groups.

The group described the ruling as the end of religious freedom in Russia.

The denomination says it has 175,000 members in Russia - a country where it was persecuted during the Stalin era.

An estimated eight million people worldwide are part of the Christian-based movement, best known for going door-to-door looking for new converts.

The ruling means that the group's headquarters near St Petersburg and 395 local chapters will close.