
Philadelphia's Joel Embiid scored 31 points and pulled down 12 rebounds in his return after missing seven games to spark the 76ers on Sunday in a 108-100 NBA victory at Chicago. Embiid had been sidelined by a left knee injury and personal reasons since a November 20 loss to Memphis, the Sixers going 4-3 in his absence. Javascript is required for you to be able to read premium content. Please enable it in your browser settings.THIS December, make Christmas a memorable one with exclusive offers from Lexus. From Dec. 1 to 31, 2024, guests can avail of personalized packages with 0-percent interest on select Lexus vehicles. Register to read this story and more for free . Signing up for an account helps us improve your browsing experience. OR See our subscription options.
Ghana: CJID, DUBAWA harp on credible polls
Netanyahu is leading Israel into ruin: Der SpiegelCollege Football Playoff's first 12-team bracket is set with Oregon No. 1 and SMU in, Alabama out SMU captured the last open spot in the 12-team College Football Playoff, bumping Alabama to land in a bracket that placed undefeated Oregon at No. 1. The selection committee preferred the Mustangs, losers of a heartbreaker in the Atlantic Coast Conference title game, who had a far less difficult schedule than Alabama of the SEC but one fewer loss. The inaugural 12-team bracket marks a new era for college football, though the Alabama-SMU debate made clear there is no perfect formula. The tournament starts Dec. 20-21 with four first-round games. It concludes Jan. 20 with the national title game in Atlanta. Alabama left out of playoff as committee rewards SMU's wins over Crimson Tide's strong schedule The College Football Playoff committee took wins over strength of schedule, taking SMU over Alabama for the final at-large spot in the field. The field was expanded from four to 12 teams this season, but that didn’t save the committee from controversy. SMU showed it could compete against a traditional power, losing to Clemson 34-31 on a 56-yard field goal in the ACC title game on Saturday. Alabama had some ups and downs in its first season under coach Kalen DeBoer. The Crimson Tide had quality wins against Georgia and South Carolina, but lost at Vanderbilt, Tennessee and Oklahoma. Big Ten wins playoff selection derby, followed by SEC despite notable Alabama omission College football’s conference shakeup left concerns about two super conferences dominating the playoff field. They weren’t totally unfounded, or 100% born out. The Big Ten, not the Southeastern Conference, was the biggest winner. The ACC scored, too. The Big Ten led the initial 12-team playoff field with four making the cut, topped by a No. 1 Oregon team that was part of the Pac-12 exodus. Then came the SEC — and one notable omission. ACC runner-up SMU got the nod over college football blue-blood Alabama, another blemish in Kalen DeBoer’s first season as Nick Saban’s championship-or-bust successor. Darnold delivers for Vikings with career-high 347 yards and 5 TDs to beat Falcons, Cousins 42-21 MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Sam Darnold threw for 347 yards and five touchdowns, both career highs, and the Minnesota Vikings pulled away from Kirk Cousins and the Atlanta Falcons 42-21 for their sixth straight victory. Darnold added another highlight to his brilliant first season with the Vikings following Cousins' departure in free agency to Atlanta with a 22-for-28 performance and no turnover-worthy plays despite heavy first-half pressure. Jordan Addison had eight catches for 133 yards and three scores and Justin Jefferson racked up seven receptions for 132 yards and two touchdowns. Cousins threw two more interceptions without a touchdown in his return to Minnesota. Saquon Barkley sets Eagles season rushing record and has Dickerson's NFL mark in his sights PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Saquon Barkley has broken LeSean McCoy's Eagles franchise record for rushing yards in a season. Barkley has 1,623 yards. He surpassed McCoy's mark of 1,607 yards with a 9-yard run in Sunday's 22-16 win over Carolina. Barkley finished the game with 124 yards, within a yard of his season average. He has four games left and is on pace to break Eric Dickerson's 40-year-old NFL record of 2,105 yards. Dickerson set that record in a 16-game season and Barkley has one more game. Eagles fans serenaded Barkley with “MVP!” chants and McCoy congratulated him on social media. Saints QB Derek Carr injures left hand on dive in 4th quarter of win over Giants EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (AP) — New Orleans Saints quarterback Derek Carr injured his left hand late in the fourth quarter of Sunday’s 14-11 victory over the New York Giants when he went airborne while trying for a first down and crashed to the turf. Carr tried to leap over a Giants tackler and landed at the New Orleans 39-yard line, extending his non-throwing hand to break his fall. He was on the turf for a minute or two before walking to the medical tent. He was examined and slowly walked to an area where X-rays are done. The injury could hurt the already slim playoff hopes of the Saints. Tamar Bates scores 29 points to help Missouri beat No. 1 Kansas 76-67 COLUMBIA, Mo. (AP) — Tamar Bates had 29 points and five steals to help Missouri beat Hunter Dickinson and No. 1 Kansas 76-67. Mark Mitchell scored 17 points in Missouri’s first win over Kansas since a 74-71 victory on Feb. 4, 2012. Anthony Robinson II had 11 points and five steals for the 8-1 Tigers. Dickinson had 19 points and 14 rebounds, but he also committed seven turnovers. The 7-2 Jayhawks have lost two straight on the road after falling 76-63 against Creighton on Wednesday night. Scottie Scheffler ends his big year in the Bahamas with his 9th victory NASSAU, Bahamas (AP) — Scottie Scheffler ended his biggest year with another victory. Scheffler was coming off a two-month break and looked as good as ever. He shot 63 in the Hero World Challenge and set tournament records at Albany with a 72-hole total of 263 and a six-shot victory. Tom Kim was the runner-up and Justin Thomas finished third. Scheffler ends his year with nine victories in 21 tournaments. That includes the holiday tournament in the Bahamas and the Olympic gold medal in Paris. It's the third-highest winning percentage in the last 40 years. Tournament host Tiger Woods had two better years. Lindsey Vonn is encouraged by how close she is to being competitive in ski racing return at age 40 COPPER MOUNTAIN, Colo. (AP) — Lindsey Vonn is encouraged by how close she is to being competitive again in her ski racing return at 40 years old. Vonn is still getting her ski equipment dialed in and getting used to going full speed again on her new titanium knee. That’s why all that she's reading into being more than two seconds behind in a pair of lower-level super-G races Sunday is that she’s right there. This after nearly six years away from ski racing and an abbreviated prep period. She was 2.19 seconds behind in the first race and 2.06 in the second. Both were won by her American teammate Lauren Macuga. Plane circles MetLife Stadium with message to co-owner John Mara to fix the Giants' 'dumpster fire' EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (AP) — A small plane circled MetLife Stadium roughly 90 minutes before New York was to play host to the New Orleans Saints on Sunday, asking Giants co-owner John Mara to overhaul the team that has made the playoffs twice since winning the Super Bowl in February 2012. “Mr. Mara, enough. Please fix this dumpster fire!” the message read as it was towed behind the rear of a small plane.
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LIVE. Rico Verhoeven vs. Levi RigtersBOILING SPRINGS, N.C. (AP) — Po'Boigh King had 28 points in North Carolina Central's 78-77 victory over Gardner-Webb on Saturday. King added six rebounds for the Eagles (4-7). Isaac Parson scored 13 points and added seven assists and three steals. Keishon Porter shot 2 of 7 from the field, including 1 for 3 from 3-point range, and went 3 for 4 from the line to finish with eight points. The Runnin' Bulldogs (4-6) were led in scoring by Anthony Selden, who finished with 25 points. Jamaine Mann added 15 points for Gardner-Webb. Shahar Lazar finished with 10 points and four assists. The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar .
Kingfield students engage in hands-on activitiesOppenheimer star Emma Dumont has revealed they are trans masculine non-binary and has changed their name. The Hollywood star, who also starred in Licorice Pizza, confirmed their family has started calling them the new name too. The 30-year-old has confirmed they will now use the they/them pronouns instead of she/her, making the change apparent on their Instagram profile. They also wrote in the blurb: "Only call me Nick if ur cool okay?" While the star, best known for playing the role as Jackie, the sister-in-law of J. Robert Oppenheimer (Cillian Murphy) in the hit movie, will still be going by the name Emma Dumont for career purposes, their representative confirmed they will go by Nick with friends and family. Despite recent social media activity, Dumont, who was born Emma Noelle Roberts, has yet to publicly address their coming out. Speaking to TMZ , the star's representative said: "They identify as a trans masculine non-binary person." The star has posted a number of times on social media in recent weeks. Fans have been positive with their response on their latest upload. One user wrote: "Much love from a fellow transmasc, Nick!! I hope your transition is nothing less than a wonderful, magical experience," with the actor replying "hot". Another user said: "Thank you for sharing your beautiful, true self with us," while a third added: "Hair looks SOOO good and I’m very happy for you, ur incredibly talented and deserve to feel comfortable in ur skin xxxx" Their next production, titled The New Me, doesn't have a release date yet, but they will still be credited as Emma Dumont. The plot for the movie sees a young mother peel back the layers of forgotten trauma as she tries to connect with her baby and husband. However, despite her efforts, she pays a terrible price. Other productions on their CV include NBC’s 60s-era drama Aquarius , where they portrayed Emma Karn, a devoted follower of Charles Manson. They also took on a role in The Gifted on Fox, while also starring in ABC Family's dance series Bunheads as Melanie. Other credits include Pretty Little Liars, The Fosters and The Magicians. Away from acting, they are a Mensa member and former participant in FIRST Robotics. They continue to mentor young people in the program while away from their day job. Follow Mirror Celebs on TikTok , Snapchat , Instagram , Twitter , Facebook , YouTube and Threads .
by Neville Ladduwahetty It has been reported that President Anura Kumara Dissanayake is due to visit India during the latter part of December. He and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi are expected to have talks on grant assistance projects from India, debt restructuring, people centric digitisation (identity cards, for instance), finality of the Economic and Technological Co-operation Agreement (ECTA), housing projects from India, solar electrification of religious places, agricultural development, defence cooperation, infrastructure development in the North and collaboration in human resource development. President Dissanayake is expected to raise with Premier Modi the issue of Indian fishermen fishing in Sri Lanka’s territorial waters” ( Sunday Times , December 1, 2024). It is clear from the foregoing report that the scale and scope of India’s agenda overwhelmingly outweighs Sri Lanka’s agenda that is limited to a single issue, namely, “Indian fishermen fishing in Sri Lanka’s territorial waters”. Notwithstanding this serious imbalance, Sri Lanka could gain considerable mileage by expanding the scope of this single issue in its agenda to two issues that would make a significant impact not only to Sri Lanka’s security and its national interests but also to the wellbeing of the Sri Lankan fishing community. The two issues are as follows: 1 Reparations for the damages inflicted on Sri Lanka’s marine resources by bottom trawling and the loss of revenue and wellbeing to Sri Lanka and its fishing community over decades. 2 The need to revisit existing maritime boundaries agreed to between India and Sri Lanka, which are based on historical practices and instead, establish fresh Maritime Boundaries based on International law recognized by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) relating to International Boundaries. These two issues are interlinked because it is the determination of the international boundary, based on International Law, that becomes the basis to establish claims for Reparations. Therefore, it is only by establishing the location of the International Boundary, based on a judgment by the ICJ, that lawful assessment of the claim for Reparations could be established. THE BACKGROUND One of the issues that was of significant concern to Sri Lanka and India in the early 1970s was the “ownership” of the island of Katchativu since it was pivotal to the establishment of the maritime boundary between the two countries. This issue was resolved with the signing of the 1974 Agreement by the Prime Ministers of Sri Lanka and India and revised in 1976. However, since these Agreements are based on traditional practices of citizens in both countries and, therefore, had “no legal resolution of ownership” (MDD Peiris, November 24, 2024) , at the operational level, adherence to the obligations in the Agreements are fluid. Consequently, the ceding of Katchativu by India to Sri Lanka as per the Agreements is considered by India to be an act of treachery; even Prime Minister Modi is of a similar view. As long as such perspectives persist at the highest level in India, attempting to resolve these contentious issues through dialogue is a futile exercise even if the highest level is committed to policies such as “Neighbourhood First”. Therefore, the only option for Sri Lanka and India, as members of the UN Charter, is to jointly or separately refer the matter to the ICJ for a legal resolution of all issues involved, if there is to any justice under the policy of “Neighbourhood First”, for it to mean what it states and not India First in the neighbourhood. REPARATIONS for VIOLATING SOVEREIGN RIGHTS According to the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (Article 56) the exploring, exploiting, conserving and managing living and non-living natural resources of a Coastal State within its Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) is a sovereign right. Despite this, thousands of trawlers from India enter Sri Lanka’s EEZ and not only exploit its resources but also destroy marine resources by resorting to bottom trawling, evidence of which abound. In a United Nations-Nippon Foundation of Japan Fellowship Programme of 2016, Aruna Maheepala claims: “There are over 5,000 mechanised trawlers in Tamil Nadu and nearly 2,500 of them enter Sri Lankan waters on Mondays, Wednesdays and Saturdays and often coming at 500 m of the shoreline (emphasis added) ... More than 50,000 marine fishers live in the Northern fisheries districts (Jaffna, Kiliinochchi, Mannar, Mulative), which is around one fourth of the marine fishers of the country. Before the commencement of the war (1982) around 40% of the fish production of the country came from Northern fishery districts (except Killinochchi). However, the contribution of the fish production in the Northern fishery district drastically dropped to 5% in the peak period of the war (2008) and gradually increased after 2009. Furthermore, livelihoods of Sri Lankan fishers’ have been drastically affected as a result of the Indian poaching”. News 1st reported on 14 April 2021: “Indian fishing vessels illegally fishing in Sri Lankan waters pillage around Rs, 900 billion worth of valuable marine resources in the Northern seas of Sri Lanka” (Northern Province Fisheries Asso. Chief, M.V. Subramanium). “Assessing reparation of environmental damage by the ICJ”, (Questions on International Law, QIL) cites the case of compensation for environmental damage in Nicaragua/Costa Rica, the ICJ’s Judgment was: “To shed light on the case, the Court sought support in international law and decisions of arbitral tribunals. In 1927, the ICJ already underlined in its judgment related to the Factory of Chorzów that a breach involves an obligation to make a reparation ‘in an adequate form’. The Court recalled that it had in a previous judgment, in 2015, assigned sovereignty over the area to Costa Rica, and Nicaragua’s activities were, therefore, in breach of that sovereignty. As such, the obligation for Nicaragua to make reparation was no longer to be disputed. Reparation in the form of compensation, as applied in the present case, was determined by the judgment in 2015. Before addressing the issue of compensation in itself, the Court deemed it appropriate to follow a two-fold approach. The Court first determined the existence and extent of the damage to environmental goods and services caused by Nicaragua’s wrongful activities, and then went on to assess the existence of a direct and certain causal link between such damage and Nicaragua’s activities. This section will successively examine the Court’s analysis of the points of contention, its choice of method, and the assessment of the damage as established by the Court”. BASIS for MARITIME BOUNDARIES in INTERNATIONAL LAW A meeting was held in 1921, between the Colonial Governments of India and Ceylon “in order to avoid over-exploitation of maritime resources and the possibility of competition between the fishermen of India and Sri Lanka in the same waters for their catch, the colonial Governments of Madras and Colombo agreed to delimit the waters in the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Bay. The two parties met in Colombo on October 24, 1921. The Indian team was led by Mr. C. W. E. Cotton and the team representing the government of Ceylon was headed by Hon. B. Horsburg”. “Both parties accepted the principle of equidistant and the median line could be the guiding factor”. However, since at Kachchathivu the principle of equidistant “would considerably narrow the area of operations for the Indian fishermen”, the Ceylon delegation proposed a line that was three miles west of the island “so that there would be an equitable apportionment in the fisheries domain for both Sri Lanka and India”. The proposal by the Ceylon delegation was based on the fact that “Sri Lanka’s sovereignty over Kachchathivu was never in question, was beyond any doubt and was not a matter for negotiation. He (Hon. B. Horsburg) quoted from the correspondence that the Survey Department and the Department of Public Works in Colombo had exchanged with the counterparts in India, in which the sovereignty of Sri Lanka over Kachchativu had been taken for granted by the Indian authorities... After discussion the delimitation line was fixed three miles west of Kachchativu” (Jayasinghe, p. 14,15). Agreement between the two parties is reflected in the letter from the head of the Indian delegation, C. W. E. Cotton, in which he states: ” ... we unanimously decided that the delimitation of the new jurisdiction for fishing purposes could be decided independently of the question of territoriality. The delimitation line was accordingly fixed, with our concurrence three miles west of Kachchativu and the Ceylon representatives thereupon agreed to a more orderly alignment south of the island than they had originally proposed...” (Ibid, p. 130). What is relevant from all of the above is that regardless of the basis for establishing a boundary under colonial rule, such boundaries morph into territorial boundaries of independent states under the “Doctrine of UTI POSSIDETIS”. DOCTRINE of UTI POSSIDETIS Black’s Law Dictionary has defined the legal Doctrine of “Uti possidetis juris” as “the doctrine that old administrative boundaries will become international boundaries when a political subdivision achieves independence (Hansal & Allison, “The Colonial Legacy and Border Stability”, p. 2; quoting Garner 1999). The principle behind this doctrine dates back to Roman times. The principle first emerged in the modern sense with the decolonization of Latin America when each former Spanish colony agreed to accept territories that were “presumed to be possessed by its colonial predecessors” (Ibid) . The same doctrine was accepted by former colonies in the African continent. The International Court of Justice (ICJ) has “argued for its relevance across the world” (Ibid). “This principle was stated most directly in the ICJ’s 1986 decision in the Frontier Dispute/Burkina Faso Republic of Mali case. The ICJ had been asked to settle the location of a disputed segment of the border between Mali and Burkina Faso, both of which had been part of French West Africa before independence. In their judgment over the merits of this Frontier Dispute case the ICJ emphasized the legal principle of uti possidetis juris”: “The ICJ judgment in the Mali-Burkina Faso Dispute case also argued that the principle of uti possidetis should apply in any decolonization situation regardless of the legal or political status of the entities on each side of the border”: “The territorial boundaries which have to be respected may also derive from international frontiers which previously divided a colony of one State from a colony of another, or indeed a colonial territory from the territory of another independent State...There is no doubt that the obligation to respect pre-existing international frontiers in the event of State succession derives from a general rule of international law, whether or not the rule is expressed in the formula of uti possidetis” (ICJ 1986, Ibid). Based on the ICJ Judgment, the Maritime Boundary between India and Sri Lanka should be what existed during Colonial times and continue as the International Maritime Boundary when India and Sri Lanka gained independence. The fact that Sri Lanka failed to use the provision of Uti Possidetis has cost Sri Lanka’s economy dearly and continues to do so in terms of treasure and human suffering. CONCLUSION The issue of Indian fishermen fishing in Sri Lanka’s territorial waters was resolved in 1921, when the Colonial Government of India and then Ceylon unanimously agreed on what the Maritime Boundary was to be. Accordingly, the island of Kachchativu was to be part of Sri Lanka’s sovereign territory as it had been before Ceylon was colonized. Following independence of both countries, the boundaries that were recognized while under colonial rule should have been recognised as the boundaries of independent India and Sri Lanka in keeping with the internationally recognized doctrine of UTI POSSIDETIS cited above. Instead of staking Sri Lanka’s claim on the principle that colonial boundaries transform into international boundaries upon gaining independence, Sri Lanka opted to base their claim on traditional and historical practices and agreements were signed by the Prime Ministers of India and Sri Lanka.in 1974 and revised in 1976. The opportunity to stake Sri Lanka’s claim on the basis of international law was lost, perhaps due to unfamiliarity with related legal provisions. While sovereign countries are free to forge agreements between themselves, their durability is dependent on varying personal political agendas of political actors in each country. Consequently, what is acceptable today may be unacceptable tomorrow. Since these agreements are not based on international law, Indian political leaders, such as Prime Minister Modi, refuse to accept them. These perspectives have emboldened Indian fishermen to violate Maritime Boundaries and destroy marine resources by resorting to bottom trawling. Furthermore, the numerous discussions between the two governments have failed to resolve substantive issues and have resulted ONLY in the India government’s focus being on the release of arrested Indian fishermen and their vessels. Therefore, since the issue of maritime boundaries has a direct bearing on illegal entry into Sri Lanka’s sovereign territory and destruction of marine resources, the ONLY durable way to resolve this contentious issue is to seek the assistance of the ICJ to rule on a legal determination as to the location of maritime boundaries based on the principle of UTI POSSIDETIS, on which depends claims for reparations for damages to maritime resources inflicted over decades. In this regard, Sri Lanka should be encouraged by the ICJ determination in the case of Nicaragua and Costa Rica in 2015 cited above. The opportunity presented by the forthcoming visit of President Dissanayake to India should NOT be missed by the new government because all previous governments and their advisors have failed to address this all-important issue, either because of their timidity or ignorance of relevant International Laws. If Dissanayake fails to inform India that Sri Lanka has no option but to seek the assistance of the ICJ to resolve the issue of maritime boundaries, Sri Lanka will have to accept the bitter prospect of the plunder of its resources and the sovereign rights of the People and the Nation forever.
Marco Silva has urged his ex-Arsenal stars to inspire Fulham to victory at Tottenham . Three points would see the Cottagers leapfrog their London counterparts in the table as Silva's side bid to bounce back from last weekend's shock home thrashing at the hands of Wolves . And the Fulham boss wants Emile Smith Rowe, Reiss Nelson and Alex Iwobi, all Gunners academy graduates, to make themselves heroes, stating: "I haven't spoken with Emile, Reiss or with Alex about this situation. "However, probably their feeling is going to be different about the game. The reaction towards them from the Tottenham fans is also probably going to be different than with me or Kenny Tete or Issa Diop. "If it can give them a different level of motivation, then it would be good for us. They are in Fulham now and they fight really hard for us. I know they are proud to be part of the club in this part of their careers." "If it can give them a different level of motivation, then it would be good for us. They are in Fulham now and they fight really hard for us. I know they are proud to be part of the club in this part of their careers." Ahead of the matchup, stubborn Spurs boss Ange Postecoglou boldly declared he is "not interested" in pragmatism after Tottenham threw away a late lead in their Europa League draw with Roma in midweek. Silva, however, revealed that while he has huge admiration for his opposite number, he had no choice but to evolve in order to make Fulham competitive again in the Premier League . The Portuguese said: "You adjust things, you are always trying to add things and in life, you can never stand still. "Yes, in some moments I know I like to play football and be on the front foot but sometimes it does depend on the opponent and whether the other team allows you to do it. "What I see from Ange is that you can always talk about the identity of the team. You can choose an idea but you have to convince the players. "I really respect him, I have my idea and identity and what I see from Tottenham is one clear idea from a very good manager and he goes with it until the end." Fulham will be without imperious centre-back Joachim Andersen this weekend after the Dane suffered a calf injury against Wolves. Harrison Reed, Jorge Cuenca and Ryan Sessegnon are also sidelined. Join our new WhatsApp community! Click this link to receive your daily dose of Mirror Football content. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don’t like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you’re curious, you can read our Privacy Notice.Maximizing brand visibility for Pinoy Christmas shoppersJPE calls for ceasefire