Sherman A1
Sherman A1's JournalNavy Secretary Pulls Sexual Harassment Investigative Authority from Unit Commanders
Unit commanders in the Navy and Marine Corps will no longer have investigative authority over sexual harassment allegations, according to a department-wide message sent Friday by Navy Secretary Carlos Del Toro.
Effective immediately, the message says, commanding officers must escalate complaints to the next higher-level commander, who will then appoint an investigating officer. That investigator should be from outside the command and "shall not be familiar with the subject or the complainant," the message says.
The interim policy includes a carve-out to allow an investigator from within the same command to investigate, however, if that next-level commander determines an outside investigation would "unreasonably interfere with the command's ability to complete its mission." Such a carve-out requires sign-off from at least a one-star admiral or general, the message says.
The change comes on the two-year anniversary of the murder of 20-year-old Army Spc. Vanessa Guillén, who complained about sexual harassment at Ft. Hood, Texas, before her killing.
https://www.military.com/daily-news/2022/04/25/navy-secretary-pulls-sexual-harassment-investigative-authority-unit-commanders.html
Legacy of Ulysses S. Grant Complicated 200 Years After Birth
The legacy of Ulysses S. Grant isn't getting any less complicated 200 years after his birth.
Grant battered the slave-owning South into surrender as President Abraham Lincoln's top Union general, yet he owned at least one enslaved person before the war.
A Native American man was among Grant's best friends and Grant was sympathetic toward Indigenous people, but he let white settlers overrun their lands as president.
A relentless attacker on the battlefield, Grant failed to prevent corruption in his own administration.
https://www.military.com/daily-news/2022/04/25/legacy-of-ulysses-s-grant-complicated-200-years-after-birth.html
Babcock Starts Building First of Five Royal Navy Type 31 Frigates
Babcock has started construction of the first of five Royal Navy Type 31 frigates, HMS Venturer, at its Rosyth facility in the UK.
After cutting the first steel on the program in September 2021, the traditional keel-laying event formally recognized the start of the build, including placing a specially commissioned coin under the keel. On completion of the ship, the coin will be presented to the Captain and crew.
The ceremony was held in the new build hall, the Venturer Building, which forms part of a £60 million investment program, on top of an additional £100 million over the last ten years.
The fully covered hall will house two frigates for uninterrupted, parallel assembly and will support increased productivity gains through improved access to the platforms and digital connectivity.
https://www.marinelink.com/news/babcock-starts-building-first-five-royal-496076
Ukrainian Grains Reach Romanian Black Sea Port
Ukraine has sent around 80,000 tones of grains to the Romanian Black Sea port of Constanta so far, with more expected to arrive, the port's manager said on Tuesday.
Ukraine's sea ports have been blocked since a Russian invasion two months ago and the country, a major agricultural producer, has been forced to export by train via its western border or via its small Danube river ports into Romania.
European Union member Romania shares borders of the Black Sea - a major shipping artery for grain and oil - with Bulgaria, Turkey, Georgia and Ukraine.
"There are around 80,000 tonnes of grains which have already arrived, they are stored in silos, a part of them were loaded on ship," Constanta Port manager Florin Goidea told Reuters.
https://www.marinelink.com/news/ukrainian-grains-reach-romanian-black-sea-496072
One Migrant Dead, 26 Missing after Dinghy Capsizes off Spain's Canary Islands
One migrant died and 26 were missing after their dinghy capsized in the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Spain's Canary Islands, the Spanish Coast Guard told Reuters on Tuesday.
The coast guard rescued 34 people after the vessel capsized around 135 miles off the southern tip of Gran Canaria on Monday. Another two vessels carrying around 63 people, including two children, were found floating in the sea around 40 miles to the south. All those onboard were rescued, the coast guard said.
Authorities were alerted on April 24 to a dinghy that had left Cabo Bojador in Western Sahara, a disputed territory claimed by Morocco, with 60 migrants aboard. Only 34 of them have been found, the Coast Guard said.
A Spanish Coast Guard plane spotted the stricken boat and was assisted by two merchant vessels and a helicopter until a Spanish rescue ship arrived.
https://www.marinelink.com/news/one-migrant-dead-missing-dinghy-capsizes-496075
No humanitarian corridors today as Russia warns of WWIII
Russia accused NATO of creating a serious risk of nuclear war by arming Ukraine in a proxy battle as Washington and its allies met today to pledge the heavy weapons Kyiv needs to achieve victory.
It comes as Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk said no humanitarian corridors were operating today as there had been no break in the fighting in Ukraine.
US officials have shifted emphasis this week from speaking mainly about helping Ukraine defend itself to bolder talk of a Ukrainian victory delivering a blow to Russia's ability to threaten its neighbours.
They have approved shipments of hundreds of millions of dollars in arms, including artillery and drones they held back from sending in earlier phases of the war.
https://www.rte.ie/news/2022/0426/1294306-ukraine-russia/
Army officer appears before court martial over sexual assault charges
An Army officer has appeared before a court martial on a series of charges, including sexual assault, arising out of an incident involving two female soldiers at a military barracks in Dublin two years ago.
The accused, who cannot be identified as a result of reporting restrictions imposed by Military Judge, Colonel Michael Campion, has yet to indicate a plea to the various charges arising out events at McKee Barracks, off Blackhorse Avenue, in Dublin on 25 June 2020.
The commissioned officer is facing a number of charges, including sexual assault under the Criminal Law (Rape Amendment) Act 1990 and assault under Section 2 of the Non-Fatal Offences Against the Person Act 1997.
The soldier is also charged with offences under the Defence Act 1954, relating to drunkenness and conduct contrary to good order and discipline.
https://www.rte.ie/news/ireland/2022/0426/1294452-army-officer-court-martial/
Work has kept me alive says world's oldest woman, 118
A French nun believed to be the oldest woman alive following the death of 119-year-old Japanese woman Kane Tanaka has attributed her longevity to hard work.
France's Sister Andre, who is aged 118, said today she would now like to beat the record of oldest person ever and that work and caring for others had long kept her spry.
"People say that work kills, for me work kept me alive, I kept working until I was 108," the Catholic nun told reporters in the tea-room of the Saint-Catherine-Laboure nursing home in Toulon.
Although she is now blind and gets around in a wheelchair, she used to care for other elderly people much younger than herself.
https://www.rte.ie/news/world/2022/0426/1294448-sister-andre-france/
Newly-arrived Nataliia lands job helping fellow Ukrainians find work in Finland
YLE NEWS
26.4. 09:58
Like millions of Ukrainians who suddenly found themselves in other parts of the world, Nataliia Selivánova and her school-age son fled Ukraine shortly after Russia invaded.
Following an attack on their hometown of Brovary, outside Kyiv, Selivánova and her child eventually reached Lahti, Finland in March.
Then she began volunteering at the city's Ukrainian relief centre, where she met Sirpa Kilpeläinen, an entrepreneur from the staffing company Eezy.
Kilpeläinen was looking for someone to help other newly-arrived Ukrainians find work in the Häme region.
https://yle.fi/news/3-12418553
'A lucky break': Auckland rapist avoids jail for 'appalling' attacks on girls
An Auckland teenager who raped and sexually violated multiple teenage girls has been sentenced to home detention and supervision.
He was arrested after multiple women made rape and sexual assault complaints to police in 2020. He was charged with rape, unlawful sexual connection and indecent assault against five victims and pleaded guilty to all his charges.
He was due to be sentenced in September last year but his hearing was delayed by the Delta lockdown.
Judge Claire Ryan today declined the 19-year-old's application for permanent name suppression but his lawyer John Corby immediately appealed, meaning his name is still suppressed.
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/crime/a-lucky-break-auckland-rapist-avoids-jail-for-appalling-attacks-on-girls/W3XXDZSE3ER2HXLWRPVZ6TBYDU/
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