Asus Zenfone 9 has surfaced online in an alleged promo video ahead of the formal announcement, giving us a glimpse at the design of the phone, as well as specifications. The new Zenfone series handset from the Taiwanese smartphone brand is expected to launch soon, however, the exact date is yet to be confirmed by the company. In the video, the Asus Zenfone 9 is seen with a hole-punch cutout at the top left corner and is powered by the Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 SoC.
A YouTube channel named Fenibook has posted the alleged promo video of the Asus Zenfone 9. In the video, the smartphone is shown in multiple colour options with a hole-punch display design. The video suggests a 5.9-inch Samsung AMOLED display with a 120Hz refresh rate on the handset. Further, it is said to be powered by Qualcomm’s new Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 SoC. On the back, it is seen carrying a dual camera module with a LED flash with support for the six-axis gimbal stabiliser. The camera unit is led by a 50-megapixel Sony IMX766 primary sensor. It could also include an in-display fingerprint sensor for security.
As per the video, the upcoming Asus Zenfone 9 will pack a 4,300mAh battery. It could also get dual stereo speakers and a 3.5mm audio jack for a better audio experience. The handset is shown with an IP68 rating for dust and water resistance.
The Asus ZenFone 9 will succeed the Asus ZenFone 8, which was unveiled in select markets in May last year with a starting price tag of EUR 599 (roughly Rs. 53,200) for the base 6GB RAM + 128GB storage variant. It is powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 along with up to 16GB of LPDDR5 RAM and packs dual rear cameras. Other major highlights of the phone include 120Hz Samsung AMOLED display, 64-megapixel primary sensor, IP68-certified build and 4,000mAh battery.
China’s cyberspace regulator on Thursday said that rules requiring data exports to undergo security reviews would be effective from September 1, the first time it has given a start date for a new regulatory framework that will affect hundreds, if not thousands, of Chinese companies.
The details of a new compulsory security review to be carried out by the Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC), which will be used to determine whether large quantities of Chinese user data in the possession of a private entity can be sent overseas, were also finalised and published on Thursday, the regulator said in a statement on its official WeChat account.
While much of what the security review will entail was already laid out by the CAC in draft rules published last October, the final version published on Thursday adds an important detail.
Companies or entities that have since January 1 of last year sent abroad the personal information of 100,000 or more users, or “sensitive” personal information belonging to 10,000 or more users, would also have to undergo the CAC security review.
Previously it was unknown from which date the CAC would measure the size of companies and entities’ user data troves.
The January 1 date confirms that the scope of the security review will go far beyond just “operators of critical information infrastructure and data processors handling personal information of more than 1 million people”, another category defined early on by the CAC draft rules.
“Clarifying the specific provisions of the data export security review is necessary to promote the healthy development of the digital economy, prevent and resolve cross-border data security risks, safeguard national security and the societal and public interest,” CAC said on Thursday.
China’s concerns regarding overseas data exports have recently bruised a number of Chinese companies.
The CAC launched cybersecurity reviews into Chinese companies Full Truck Alliance, Kanzhun Ltd, and ride-hailing giant Didi Global in July last year, ordering them to stop registering new users, citing national security and the public interest.
While Full Truck Alliance and Kanzhun announced the resumption of new user registration last week and said it had “rectified” the issues identified by the CAC’s probe, Didi has yet to make a similar announcement.
Microsoft has confirmed that it will be in attendance at Gamescom 2022, where it will offer updates on previously announced Xbox games.
Announced in a press release, Microsoft said “We’re excited to confirm that Xbox will be back on the show floor at gamescom 2022 in Cologne, Germany. Fans in Europe and around the world can expect updates on some announced games coming to Xbox in the next 12 months.”
Damage caused by arsonists during a xenophobic attack in Johannesburg. Credit: Lwazi Khumalo/IPS
by Fawzia Moodley (johannesburg)
Inter Press Service
Johannesburg, Jul 07 (IPS) – Around the world, from Syria to Libya, from Bangladesh to Ukraine, millions have become refugees in foreign lands due to war, famine, or political and economic instability in their countries.
After South Africa gained freedom in 1994, Africa’s powerhouse became a magnet for migrants from politically and economically unstable African and Asian countries. But in recent years, with the country facing an economic meltdown and an unemployment rate of about 37 percent, waves of xenophobic attacks have shattered the dreams of migrant communities.
Since 2008 when at least 62 people were killed, thousands of migrants have faced intermittent attacks, been left homeless, or have had their shops burnt or looted.
Locals blame the migrants for taking away their jobs and the increase in crimes such as hijackings (armed vehicle robbery), human trafficking, and drug peddling (mainly attributed to Nigerians).
Migrant street vendors and artisans provide valuable services to the community. Lwazi Khumalo/IPS
Politicians, such as former Johannesburg Mayor Herman Mashaba, blame foreign nationals for the country’s socio-economic woes, adding to the cocktail of anti-migrant sentiment. Other politicians and even some members of the ruling African National Congress(ANC), battling for its political life, have taken to “scapegoating” foreign nationals.
The rise of the Dudula movement (meaning pushback in isiZulu) has further whipped up anti-migrant sentiment. On June 11 and 12, 2022, stallholders at the Yeoville market in inner-city Johannesburg had to close shop after Operation Dudula threatened to remove foreigners from their stalls. The stallholders are mainly Congolese migrants.
On the night of June 20, arsonists set fire to 23 stalls destroying goods worth about R500,000 (about 30,500 US dollars). It’s suspected that the fire was linked to or inspired by the Dudula group – although the group denied complicity.
A stallholder who spoke to IPS on condition of anonymity said a group of people seen loitering near the market that night is believed to have started the fire. The distraught mother of four said she could not do business because all her stock had been destroyed. Worse still, she owed her suppliers because she bought on credit and planned to repay them later.
South Africa’s logistics industry and supply chain are also under threat, with the All Truck Drivers’ Foundation (ADTF) blocking the country’s main transport routes, setting trucks on fire, and attacking foreign truck drivers.
IPS spoke to a long-haul driver, a documented Zimbabwean who has been in South Africa for 11 years. The driver, who did not want to be identified, says he transports coal from a mine in Mpumalanga to Botswana and has been forced to send his family back to Zimbabwe.
“I have been sitting at home for three days because I am too frightened to go to work. I didn’t steal anyone’s job because the company has a set rate. I am not undercutting anyone,” he says.
Amir Sheikh, leader of the African Diaspora Forum, with Nicholas Mabena Ngqabatho, Executive Director of the ADF. Credit: Fawzia Moodley/IPS
Amir Sheikh, leader of The African Diaspora Forum (ADF), says foreign nationals are not taking away jobs from locals: “There are at most about four million migrants in a population of over 60 million. So how can they be taking away every South African’s job?
He argues that foreign nationals benefit the country.
“They pay taxes and open shops in areas where elderly people on social grants and the poor have to travel long distances to buy essentials; they even sell goods on credit to customers. Poor township residents and pensioners also supplement their income by renting rooms up to R4,000 a month (about 300 US dollars) to foreign nationals.”
“In areas like Yeoville, migrants pay up to R7000 (about 425 US dollars) for accommodation to local landlords,” Jean Bwasa, another activist, adds.
Amir admits that there are criminal elements among foreign nationals.
“Just as much as there are criminals among South Africans.”
He laughs at the notion that all Nigerians are drug lords.
“How many people realize that the Yebo! Gogo man, the face of South Africa’s popular Vodacom cellular operator’s TV ad, Professor Kole Omotoso, is a Nigerian? His son Akin, a renowned filmmaker? Are they criminals?”
Nicholas Mabena Ngqabatho, Executive Director of the ADF, is working with union federation Cosatu to recruit foreign nationals into trade unions to protect them from exploitative bosses taking advantage of their desperate situation.
He says that many foreign truckers who come under attack are cross-border drivers.
“They are not taking away locals’ jobs but are part of a supply chain across Africa that is being disrupted by xenophobic attacks to the detriment of the South African economy.”.
Ngqabatho says foreign nationals run the gauntlet of extortion, attacks, and bureaucracy around documentation, such as the government’s decision to end the Zimbabwe Exemption Permit (ZEP) granted to Zimbabweans who came to SA before 2009.
The ADF is fighting to retain the ZEP on behalf of about 178 000 Zimbabweans. They face the prospect of becoming undocumented migrants, making them vulnerable to extortion and exploitation or forcing them to return to the country they fled for political or economic reasons.
Sheikh says it’s not all doom and gloom, and are cases of inter-community solidarity in areas like Alexandra (a township in Johannesburg). Recently an alleged Dudula movement member was forced to make a hurried retreat when the local community became angered by an attempt to evict a foreign national from her home.
A wall with rental advertisements on Jules street in Johannesburg where migrants rent flats or rooms from South African landlords. Credit: Lwazi Khumalo/IPS
A study by the World Bank, Mixed Migration, Forced Displacement and Job Outcomes in South Africa, underlines the urban dimensions of migrancy into and within South Africa (from provinces like the Eastern Cape and KwaZulu Natal to economic hubs like Johannesburg and Cape Town). It highlights that both categories of migrants face the same challenges of poverty, overcrowding, high crime, and drug and alcohol abuse.
“In this sense, development actors often find it impossible to differentiate between the vulnerabilities that internal migrants, refugees, and locals face in urban areas,” the report states.
Debunking the myth that foreign nationals are ‘stealing’ jobs from locals or are better off than locals is the finding that “one immigrant worker generated approximately two jobs for local residents in South Africa between 1996 and 2011”.
According to World Bank, “immigrants and locals are likely to specialize in performing different and sometimes complementary tasks, which can lead to overall productivity gains and positive impacts on local employment and wages.”
The report further confirms the ADF’s contention that migrants create employment for South Africans. The report stated that “25% of immigrants are self-employed, possibly reflecting the demand for the diverse set of entrepreneurial skills they bring, which can result in large multiplier effects.”
TEMPE, Ariz. — When training camp starts in late July, new Arizona Cardinals wide receiver Marquise Brown won’t be slowed by the usual learning curve that players encounter when joining a new team.
Sure, Brown will still be learning the nuances of a new playbook, the tendencies of new teammates and how his new team does certain things, but Brown is in a unique situation in Arizona. He knows the quarterback, former Oklahoma teammate Kyler Murray, as well as any receiver can know their quarterback, and his head coach, Kliff Kingsbury, has largely adapted the offense toward what Brown played in at Oklahoma, even down to some practice drills.
Brown is already at home in the Cardinals’ offense and won’t simply hit the ground running to start training camp. He’ll be flat-out sprinting.
“I’d say, comparatively speaking, if you’re talking about a guy who didn’t know the quarterback or didn’t play in a similar system and didn’t get to work out with him and hear the calls, see the signals, I would say he’s way ahead of the curve when it comes to that,” Kingsbury said.
Part of Brown’s sped-up acclimation was due to his relationship with Murray. The two spent time this offseason working out together in Dallas before Brown’s trade to the Cardinals on the first day of the NFL draft in April. They continued their throwing sessions after they were reunited as teammates. Those workouts, however, took on a different tune.
Murray was able to start explaining the scheme to Brown and teach him the hand signals that Arizona uses as a way to relay plays from quarterback to receivers. They also went over Arizona’s pace of play, Kingsbury said. When they hit the field together for minicamp, Brown wasn’t spending time having to learn both the offense and the signals.
He already knew them.
“It helped me out a lot,” Brown said.
The two talk daily, and having caught passes from Murray in some capacity since 2017, Brown knows what his quarterback likes and doesn’t like.
“Getting that time in together is huge anytime you can get that type of work,” Kingsbury said.
Picking up the offense, beyond what Murray has helped with, has been expedited because of the similarities to what Oklahoma ran when Murray and Brown were there. That was intentional and began when Murray was drafted as the No. 1 overall pick in 2019.
Kingsbury, who coached a version of the Air Raid at Texas Tech, adapted his scheme with some of what Murray ran with the Sooners to shorten Murray’s learning curve when he entered the NFL. The byproduct of doing that three years ago is that Brown is able to pick up Arizona’s offense quickly now.
“I think it’s similar to what he played in at OU,” Kingsbury said. “Obviously, position-wise, no-huddle type stuff, signal-based. But he’s been in Baltimore for a while now, and so it’s just readjusting to that, but I think he feels comfortable in what we’re doing.”
Even some of the terminology in Arizona is the same as Oklahoma.
“He won’t be learning something that’s completely foreign to him,” USC coach Lincoln Riley, who coached Brown and Murray at Oklahoma, told ESPN. “How we coach routes and some of the things that we believe in from a fundamental and just kind of a philosophical approach will be very similar, as well.
“So, now, I think other than just having been under that exact coach, I think it’d be tough to ask for a potentially smoother transition.”
And Brown likes the parts of the offense that are new to him, as well.
“Just attacking, the attack mentality,” Brown said. “We trying to put points up and, you know, that’s what I love.”
Starting the day after Arizona’s mandatory minicamp ended in mid-June, Brown was going to start getting his body in shape for training camp. Then he was planning on being wherever Murray was to build on what they’ve already established and be even further ahead entering training camp than they were during offseason practices.
“The time they’ve spent together and bond they have on and off the field, that adds up,” Riley said. “I mean, that counts. There’ll be a lot of built-up trust and excitement.”
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Wondering what beauty products you should be stocking up on for summer? Let your fellow Amazon shopper be your guide. We went through Amazon’s beauty best-sellers list to see which beauty and skincare products shoppers just can’t seem to get enough of right now, and there are quite a few summer essentials you’ll want to add to your cart ASAP.
One that really caught our eye is the SPOTMYUV UV detection stickers. If you have a tendency to forget to reapply sunscreen, these stickers will change color when it detects your sunscreen has worn off. It’s a helpful little product that shoppers say works really well, and it’s even safe for kids to use. If you want to avoid getting sunburned, it’s a product you may want to check out for yourself.
Whether you’re looking for summer hair care, fragrance, makeup or skincare, there’s definitely something in here for everyone. Plus, all the products we found are pretty affordable, which makes stocking up a lot easier on the wallet.
With that, here are the summer beauty essentials Amazon shoppers are buying right now. Check those out below.
A top Russian diplomat lashed out at the Biden administration on Thursday for trying to “foment hype” around the case of the detained American basketball star Brittney Griner, hours before her trial was expected to resume in a court near Moscow.
The diplomat, Sergei A. Ryabkov, the deputy foreign minister, said that the publicity around Ms. Griner’s case — American officials say she is essentially a hostage taken by President Vladimir V. Putin amid the war in Ukraine — was not helping her interests.
Mr. Ryabkov indicated that Moscow would be prepared to negotiate her fate, but only after the court reached a verdict on the drug charges that were brought against her. She has been detained in Russia since Feb. 17, accused by the Russian authorities of having a vape cartridge with hashish oil in her luggage at an airport near Moscow.
“We have a long-established form of discussing these matters,” Mr. Ryabkov told reporters on Thursday in Moscow, according to the Interfax news agency. “The American side’s attempts to foment hype and make noise in the public environment are understandable, but they don’t help to practically resolve issues.”
If Ms. Griner is convicted, she faces up to 10 years in a Russian penal colony.
Mr. Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris spoke on Wednesday with Ms. Griner’s wife, Cherelle Griner, according to a statement released by the White House.
During the call, the statement said, the president read a draft of a letter that he planned to send to Brittney Griner. He also said that his administration was pursuing “every avenue to bring Brittney home.”
In a statement to The New York Times on Wednesday, Cherelle Griner said she was grateful to Mr. Biden and Ms. Harris “for the time they spent with me and for the commitment they expressed to getting B.G. home.”
The United States government has classified Brittney Griner as “wrongfully detained” and is working to secure her release regardless of the outcome of the trial. While the Kremlin claims it has no involvement in Ms. Griner’s case, Russian state media reports have indicated that Moscow may press the United States to free a Russian in American custody — like the convicted arms dealer Viktor Bout — in exchange for her freedom.
What to Know About Brittney Griner’s Detention in Russia
Card 1 of 6
Why was she in Russia? Griner was in Russia playing for an international team during the W.N.B.A. off-season. Trading rest for overseas competition is common among the league’s players for many reasons, but often the biggest motivation is money.
Does this have anything to do with Ukraine? Ms. Griner’s detention comes during an inflamed standoff between Russia and the United States over Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, but it is still unclear whether Russia might have targeted Ms. Griner as leverage against the United States.
Mr. Ryabkov said that until the conclusion of Ms. Griner’s case, “there are no formal procedural grounds” to discuss further steps. He hinted, however, that Moscow was interested in negotiating over her fate, claiming that she would be helped by “a serious reading by the American side of the signals that they received from Russia, from Moscow, through specialized channels.”
He did not specify what those signals were, but insisted that talks on Ms. Griner’s fate should take place out of the public eye, according to Russian news reports.
“Hype and publicity, for all the love for this genre among modern politicians, only gets in the way in this particular instance,” Mr. Ryabkov said, according to the RIA Novosti news agency. “This does not just distract from the case, but creates interference in the truest sense of the word. That’s why silence is needed here.”
Digital Currency Group’s market maker and lending firm Genesis Trading has confirmed that it had investment exposure in the now-liquidated Three Arrows Capital (3AC).
The insolvency and subsequent liquidation order of the embattled company sent shockwaves through the cryptocurrency space last week amid an ongoing downturn across crypto markets. A major talking point was the stake other prominent companies had in the now-defunct cryptocurrency hedge fund and the ongoing fallout.
Genesis Trading is among prominent lending firms that had exposure to 3AC, which has now been confirmed by CEO Michael Moro. The company’s chief said the firm had managed to mitigate losses after 3AC had failed to meet a margin call on capital borrowed from Genesis.
1/ As part of our goal in providing transparency to the market, I wanted to share the latest update at @GenesisTrading.
While Moro stopped short of revealing how much it had lent to 3AC, he unpacked the terms of the firm’s loan to the hedge fund and the subsequent chain of events after the debtor failed to meet its repayment obligations:
“The loans to this counterparty had a weighted average margin requirement of over 80%. Once they were unable to meet the margin call requirements, we immediately sold collateral and hedged our downside.”
Genesis Trading’s parent company Digital Currency Group has assumed some of the liability owed by 3AC in order to ensure Genesis has adequate capital to continue its operations. The firm will continue to explore options to try and recoup losses in the wake of 3AC’s collapse.
Reports suggest that Genesis is facing losses in the hundreds of millions of dollars while the company is yet to disclose the details of its exposure to 3AC. Cointelegraph has reached out to the market maker for comment.
Voyager Digital was another casualty of 3AC’s collapse as the cryptocurrency exchange was forced to postpone trading, deposits and withdrawals at the start of Jul. The hedge fund failed to repay a 15,250 Bitcoin (BTC) and 350 million USD Coin (USDC) loan to the American exchange.
Juventus defender Matthijs De Ligt prefers a move to Bayern Munich over Chelsea this summer, and has gone as far as stopping talks with the west London side in order to try and push through a move to Bavaria this summer, according to reports.
The 22-year-old defender has two years left to run on his Juventus contract, which includes a release clause of 120m euros, but he is expected to depart this summer, with the Juventus CEO telling tuttosport that:
“Today it is impossible to keep a player who wants to leave.”
“But it’s always a question of numbers, it’s not that if someone wants to leave, you answer them: please, take a seat.”
“It is difficult to keep a player, but from the negotiation table all three have to get up satisfied. And the fifth article always applies: whoever has the money has won.”
TRUE✅ the management of Matthijs de Ligt (22) stopped for now the talks with @ChelseaFC They want to wait to see if @FCBayern and @juventusfc can come to an agreement @BILD_Sport
While Chelsea and Thomas Tuchel have identified De Ligt as their key central defence addition this summer, it seems as though the Dutchman would prefer a move to Bayern.
The major sticking point, of course, could be the fee. As a result, De Ligt is thought to have halted talks with the Blues in order to see if his favoured option are able to stump up the massive fee that Juventus demand for their young star.
Having already shelled out around 60m euros for new additions Sadio Mane and Ryan Gravenberch, it could well be the sale of Robert Lewandowski to Barcelona that permits the signing of De Ligt.
Natalie Portman has revealed that Thor: Love and Thunder — the new Marvel movie out now — leaves out “whole sequences, planets, and characters”. This includes some emotional scenes between Chris Hemsworth’s titular superhero and his astrophysicist former girlfriend Jane Foster, played by Portman. In a new interview, the actress opened up about how director Taika Waititi shot multiple versions of the same scenes for the fourth Thor movie, allowing the cast to work as spontaneously as possible. The Academy Award-winning performer further stated that too much “good stuff” failed to make it to the final version.
Portman told IndieWire: “I don’t want to spoil anything, but there are some very emotional scenes. The interesting thing was how we had room to workshop them. We filmed 20 different versions of [one key scene]. There’s a few pivotal emotional scenes, but we did really, really different things, many different times.”
Portman also revealed that some of her scenes with Tessa Thompson, who plays the king of New Asgard and Foster’s new friend Valkyrie, too met a similar fate. The actress jokingly said that the edited scenes contain enough material for a Marvel Cinematic Universe spin-off featuring the two characters.
“I’d be really, really happy if we could see that [spin-off]. Because there certainly is kind of a missing period in the film. … I feel like you don’t necessarily see how they’ve become close [in the film], and so I would definitely be open and excited to see that,” Portman said.
Thor: Love and Thunder revolves around Hemsworth’s Thor and Portman’s Mighty Thor as they try to take down Christian Bale’s Gorr The God Butcher, a menacing killer. The new Thor movie also features the likes of Russell Crowe as the king of the Olympians Zeus, Jaimie Alexander as the God of Thunder’s childhood friend Sif, and Waititi as the Kronan gladiator Korg.
The Guardians of the Galaxy feature in Thor: Love and Thunder, with Chris Pratt, Pom Klementieff, Dave Bautista, Sean Gunn, Karen Gillan, Vin Diesel, and Bradley Cooper reprising their respective MCU roles as Peter Quill/ Star-Lord, Mantis, Drax, Nebula, Kraglin, Groot, and Rocket.
Thor: Love and Thunder is already out in India, a day before the fourth Thor movie debuts in cinemas in the US on July 8.
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