Biden executive order aims to boost protections for sexual assault victims in U.S. military

Transcript: Cindy McCain, World Food Programme executive director, on “Face the Nation,” March 31, 2024

The following is a transcript of an interview with Cindy McCain, World Food Programme executive director, that aired on March 31, 2024.

ED O’KEEFE: We’re joined by the Executive Director of the World Food Program, Cindy McCain. Mrs. McCain, it’s great to see you. Thank you for joining us. Simply put–

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR WORLD FOOD PROGRAM, CINDY MCCAIN: My pleasure.

ED O’KEEFE: Simply put, right now there are too many people in the world going hungry and you have some critical insights into that, which is why we’re so pleased that you’re with us this morning. I wanted to begin with the situation earning the most attention right now in Gaza and as the war continues, the International Court of Justice this week called for Israel to, quote “take all necessary and effective measures” to allow humanitarian assistance into Gaza. What needs to change so that your teams can operate there?

CINDY MCCAIN: Well, first of all, thank you for covering this issue. We need access. We need full, unfettered access and right now we don’t have that. We can occasionally get a few trucks in. We can occasionally get up all the way to the north, but it’s not consistent and is- and is not to scale either. All of the other issues regarding maritime and airdrops and all those are all good. We need any- any way to be able to get food in- in any way we can, but they can’t take it to scale. We really need access to the road and we need to be able to get up to the north, all the way without being caught at checkpoints and turned around.

ED O’KEEFE: I read the World Food Program estimates simply addressing the basic food needs will require at least 300 trucks to enter Gaza every day and distribute food, especially in the north, as you mentioned, but you’ve only managed to get about nine convoys of trucks in since the start of the year. That’s nothing, right?

CINDY MCCAIN: It’s nothing. It really is. We were able to yesterday, or today I guess it was, get nine trucks in, period. We also were part of an airdrop today that was 6.1 metric tons. That’s nothing. We just cannot continue this way. As you know, famine is imminent in the north and so unless we can- can really convince our- our diplomatic groups and our political groups around the world to help convince the Israelis that we must get in and we must do it in a- in a sustained and unfettered- unfettered way. We can’t- people are going to die otherwise, and they already are dying.

ED O’KEEFE: When you or your colleagues speak with Israeli officials about getting that access, what is the reason they’re giving you why they’re not letting you in? Do they not understand the situation? Or is there some other reason?

CINDY MCCAIN: Well, I’m not really sure where the mistake has been made, but I do know that there’s been accusations that somehow the U.N. isn’t doing their job, which couldn’t be further from the truth. So I think again, it’s politics. I think it’s something that- that we’re, you know, various factions are involved in, all I want, all I need to know is when and where we can take the food in, make sure that we can distribute it. That’s what I want to know from the Israeli government.

ED O’KEEFE: You’re especially concerned as well about what’s happening in parts of Africa, specifically Sudan, South Sudan, and Chad, and you said, this could become the world’s largest hunger crisis. Why is that?

CINDY MCCAIN: Well, quite frankly, it’s the forgotten crisis now. Sudan no- is no longer paid attention to in the world media, and- and things haven’t stopped there. People are still fighting, there is no food. We have no access and we’re also fighting a climate change issue there as well. So it’s almost a combination of a perfect storm, with- with 2.2 million refugees across the borders, in various countries, especially Chad and the funding sources that we have right now and our ability to be able to fund, it just isn’t- isn’t meshing. We don’t have enough money and we need to be able to make sure that we can feed the refugees that are across the border, and also get access into Sudan from this- from- from the- the western side, the southern side, through South Sudan, and through the north, we’ve got to get food in there as well, because it can be and will be, I hope not, I pray not, the next- the next largest humanitarian crisis that will- that we will know.

ED O’KEEFE: And not only humanitarian crisis, you’ve suggested it could be a real national security risk for the United States, right?

CINDY MCCAIN: Very much so. People migrate, you know, the bad guys get mixed up in all of this. Food is the- is the major element here in being able to keep populations stable and keep- keep them healthy as well. With those two things not tended to, then people migrate, they run, they take their families, they do anything they can to feed their families.

ED O’KEEFE: You’ve made an interesting point that I think is a good reminder to all of us that these hunger crises around the world are not being caused by natural disasters, but by man-made events and conflict. And nowhere right now, perhaps, at least in this hemisphere, where we sit, is that most apparent than in Haiti, what is the situation there, as you understand it?

CINDY MCCAIN: It’s catastrophic. We- we WFP are still in there and we still are working in the north somewhat and somewhat down towards the center, but it is a very dicey situation. We are continuing our school feeding programs, but once again, as you’ve seen, there have been evacuations of U.N. personnel out of there. It’s just, again, this is a diplomatic solution. This is a man-made crisis, and we need a diplomatic solution to it and we need it now. We need it right now.

ED O’KEEFE: You know, we’d be remiss if we didn’t ask you while we have you about the death of the late Senator Joe Lieberman, who of course, was such a good friend to you and to your late husband, what did he mean to the McCain family?

CINDY MCCAIN: Oh, he was Uncle Joe to my children, he was a friend to my family and- and I had the extreme opportunity of watching two men together, not only navigate the difficulties that the world offered up to them as- as in what they did, but also watch them solve problems together in a way that was gracious and kind and loving towards humanity. And I had the good fortune of being able to call him my friend too.

ED O’KEEFE: Executive Director, Cindy McCain of the World Food Program, thank you for joining us.

CINDY MCCAIN: Thank you for having me.

ED O’KEEFE: And we’ll be right back.

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Binance Executive Reportedly Breaks Out of House Arrest

Bye!

A detained Binance executive has reportedly broken out of custody in Nigeria.

Per Forbes, the escaped executive, British-Kenyan citizen Nadeem Anjarwalla, was arrested by Nigerian authorities alongside US citizen and fellow Binancer Tigran Gambaryan in February. According to CNBC, reports that Anjarwalla had escaped custody — the pair were sequestered at a guest house in the Nigerian capital Abuja — started swirling on Friday, and the rumor was confirmed on Monday when the Nigerian government officially filed tax evasion charges against the embattled cryptocurrency exchange.

“We were made aware that Nadeem is no longer in Nigerian custody,” a Binance spokesperson told CNBC. “Our primary focus remains on the safety of our employees and we are working collaboratively with Nigerian authorities to quickly resolve this issue.”

The country’s national security advisor told Reuters that Nigeria is working with Interpol to put out an international arrest warrant for the executive, who’s only the latest crypto executive to go on the lam.

Bad Hand

Anjarwalla and Gambaryan’s detainment in Nigeria has been fraught from the beginning. According to CNBC, the duo’s February arrest was made upon their arrival to Nigeria; their passports were immediately taken, and until Monday, no charges had been brought. Their detainment period was originally set to end on March 12, but Nigerian officials — still with no declared charges — extended their release deadline.

Binance has a massive footprint in Nigeria, a reality that’s closely tied to the plummeting value of the naira, Nigeria’s national currency. As CNBC explains, many Nigerians have put money into cryptocurrencies as a way to shield their savings from skyrocketing inflation and value decreases, which the Nigerian government argues has further contributed to the naira’s dwindling value. (Though it could be argued that Binance preyed on Nigeria’s currency crisis, the country’s naira issues run much deeper than crypto.)

The country’s government has also alleged that Binance and other cryptocurrency platforms have allowed for easy money laundering through the region.

In “the last one year alone,” Nigerian central bank governor Olayemi Cardoso said in a February press conference following the executives’ detainment, according to The Financial Times, “$26 billion has passed through Binance Nigeria from sources and users who we cannot adequately identify.”

Considering that former Binance CEO Changpeng “CZ” Zhao stepped down from the exchange and pleaded guilty to money laundering in US court back in November, the claim doesn’t seem that far-fetched.

Per the BBC, Anjarwalla and Gambaryan were supposed to finally appear in court together in early April. Now, if Anjarwalla isn’t tracked down, it seems that Gambaryan might have to face the courts alone.

More on Binance: Binance CEO Steps down, Pleading Guilty to Money Laundering

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Binance executive detained in Nigeria amid a crypto crackdown has escaped custody

KADUNA, Nigeria (AP) — An executive of cryptocurrency exchange Binance has escaped custody in Nigeria, where a criminal investigation has been launched against the platform accused of being used for money laundering, authorities said Monday.

Nadeem Anjarwalla, the regional manager for Binance in Africa, “fled Nigeria using a smuggled passport,” the office of Nigeria’s National Security Adviser said in a statement, calling for “whatever information that can assist law enforcement agencies to apprehend the suspect.”

Nigeria is Africa’s largest crypto economy in terms of trade volume with many citizens using crypto to hedge their finances against surging inflation and the declining local currency.

Anjarwalla, who holds dual British and Kenyan citizenship, had been detained in Nigeria along with another colleague since Feb. 26 when they arrived in the country following a crackdown on the crypto platform. Tigran Gambaryan, the colleague who is an American citizen, remains in captivity.

Binance stopped all trading with the Nigerian naira currency on its platform in early March after authorities accused it of being used for money laundering and terrorism financing —without providing evidence publicly.

It was not clear how Anjarwalla fled custody. The Abuja-based Premium Times newspaper, which broke the news of his escape, reported that he fled from a guest house in the capital city after guards led him to a nearby mosque for prayers.

“The personnel responsible for the custody of the suspect have been arrested, and a thorough investigation is ongoing to unravel the circumstances that led to his escape from lawful detention,” Zakari Mijinyawa, spokesman for the office of Nigeria’s National Security Adviser said in a statement.

The Binance executives were being detained on court order and are due to appear in court on April 4, the statement said.

Nigeria’s tax agency, meanwhile, filed a four-count charge on tax evasion against the crypto exchange, accusing it also of “complicity in aiding customers to evade taxes through its platform.”

“The charges further detail specific instances where Binance purportedly violated tax laws, such as failing to issue invoices for VAT purposes, thus obstructing the determination and payment of taxes by subscribers,” the local Federal Inland Revenue Service said in a statement.

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Follow AP’s Africa coverage at: https://apnews.com/hub/africa

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British-Kenyan executive Nadeem Anjarwalla no longer in custody

Cryptocurrency firm Binance has told the BBC that one of its executives who had been arrested by the authorities in Nigeria is no longer in custody, amid reports he has escaped the country.

Nadeem Anjarwalla, a British-Kenyan dual national, was arrested in February with his US colleague Tigran Gambaryan.

Their detention came as the Nigerian authorities investigated alleged wrongdoing by Binance.

The company has not commented on the accusations it has been facing.

“We were made aware that Nadeem is no longer in Nigerian custody. Our primary focus remains on the safety of our employees and we are working collaboratively with Nigerian authorities to quickly resolve this issue,” a Binance spokesperson said.

Mr Anjarwalla, the company’s Africa regional manager, and Tigran Gambaryan, in charge of financial crime compliance at the firm, were arrested on 26 February after attending meetings in Nigeria’s capital, Abuja, to which they had been invited by the government, Binance said.

The authorities reportedly demanded that they name Nigerians trading on their platform.

A court granted the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission’s request to detain the two executives for 14 days, but their continued detention was not authorised by the court, a source close to the families told the BBC.

They were due to appear again in court on 4 April.

Nigerian media are reporting that Mr Anjarwalla asked the guards at a guest house where he was being held to allow him to go to the mosque last Friday but never returned.

The authorities had reportedly confiscated his British passport but the whereabouts of his Kenyan passport was unknown.

“Nadeem left Nigeria by lawful means,” the source close to the families said. Mr Gambaryan remains in custody.

Meanwhile, the Nigerian authorities have formally filed tax evasion charges against Binance at the High Court in Abuja, and named Mr Anjarwalla among the respondents.

The Federal Inland Revenue Service is accusing the cryptocurrency platform of non-payment of value added tax, company income tax, failure to file tax returns and complicity in aiding customers to evade taxes through its platform.

Last month, the Nigerian authorities clamped down on cryptocurrency firms in general over allegations they were being used for money laundering and financing terrorism.

The country’s central bank alleged that over $26bn (£20.6bn) worth of transactions had passed through Binance with untraceable sources.

It accused the platforms of fixing exchange rates and currency speculation leading to the free-fall of the naira, the local currency, and ordered the firm to pay a fine of $10bn.

Binance is understood to be one of the most popular cryptocurrency platforms in Nigeria.

Africa’s largest economy is battling an economic crisis worsened by the weakening of the naira, the soaring cost of living, and food inflation.

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Skipper of boat in Italy crash that killed U.S. publishing executive faces manslaughter investigation

ROME — The skipper of a rented motorboat involved in a crash off the Amalfi Coast that killed a U.S. publishing executive is being investigated for suspected manslaughter, a prosecutor in southern Italy said Saturday.

Salerno Chief Prosecutor Giuseppe Borrelli told a news conference in that port city that the skipper, an Italian who hasn’t publicly identified, is also being investigated on suspicion of causing a shipwreck. No charges have so far been filed against him, and the investigation is still ongoing.

Adrienne Vaughan died in a boating accident off Italy's Amalfi Coast. — Adrienne Vaughan died in a boating accident off Italy’s Amalfi Coast.Bloomsbury Publishing via AP

Adrienne Vaughan, 45, was killed and her husband and the skipper of the rented motorboat were injured in the accident Thursday afternoon off a stretch of coastline popular with tourists. The motorboat slammed into a chartered sailboat, where some 70 guests aboard were enjoying a wedding reception.

Vaughan was president of Bloomsbury Publishing’s U.S. branch, which counts writers ranging from bestselling novelists Sarah J. Maas and Susanna Clarke to historian Mark Kurlansky among its roster of authors.

Blood samples were taken from the skipper to determine alcohol and drug levels. But Borrelli indicated that for now the results were inconclusive.

“The results are being evaluated by a consultant of the prosecutor’s office since the data per se aren’t necessarily significant,’’ Borrelli. He added that more evaluation was needed to determine “the incidence of the levels on the ability of the subject” to pilot the boat.

On Friday, Italian news reports said that the blood toxicology tests had found traces of cocaine.

Investigators have questioned the skipper who remains hospitalized with what Italian media said are pelvis and rib fractures. The victim’s husband, Mike White, is being treated at another hospital for a shoulder injury, according to reports. Authorities have spoken to him and plan to do so again, Borrelli said.

The couple’s two young children were uninjured. They’re now in the care of one of the their grandfathers who travelled to Italy to help while their father is convalescing, the prosecutor said.

Borrelli said when the crash happened, Vaughan was sunning herself on the bow of the boat and “bounced” into the water at the moment of impact. He declined to detail her injuries, saying the results of an autopsy are still pending.

Two doctors who were among the passengers on the sailboat dived into the sea to to help Vaughan, while a nearby vessel brought her to shore, Italian state radio said, quoting the sailboat’s captain.

Borrelli said the woman died before a medical helicopter and local ambulance could take her to hospital.

The sailboat’s captain has told Italian media that the motorboat was speeding when it smashed into the stationary sailboat’s bow.

The prosecutor said investigators also questioned the captain of the sailboat as well as some 70 passengers including American and other foreign tourists.

The motorboat had set sail from the town of Amalfi, Borrelli said. According to Italian media, the family was headed to Positano, another popular coastal town when the crash happened.

A Bloomsbury book, “Chasing Me to My Grave: An Artist’s Memoir of the Jim Crow South,” by the late Winfred Rembert (as told to Erin I. Kelly), won the Pulitzer Prize for biography in 2022.

Bloomsbury’s Chief Executive Officer, Nigel Newton, called Vaughan’s death “a terrible blow” in a statement.

“Adrienne was a natural business leader with a great future ahead of her. She was deeply loved by colleagues due to her combination of great personal warmth with a fierce determination to make the business succeed and grow,” Newton added. “Her business instincts were outstanding and she loved authors, readers and her colleagues equally.”

A statement from the Association of American Publishers, where Vaughan was a board member, called her a “leader of dazzling talent and infectious passion” and “an extraordinary human being.”

“We send our love and condolences to all those who are in shock and mourning at this tragic loss, most particularly her husband and two children, whom she spoke of frequently with great pride,” the statement added.

Prior to working for Bloomsbury, Vaughan worked for other publishers including Scholastic, Disney Publishing Worldwide and Oxford University Press, according to the statement.

Ali Gostanian and Matteo Moschella contributed.

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Transgender rights targeted in executive order signed by Oklahoma governor

OKLAHOMA CITY — Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt on Tuesday directed state agencies to use narrow definitions of “female” and “male,” in the latest attack on transgender rights in a state that already has laws targeting bathroom use, health care and sports teams for transgender people.

Stitt signed the executive order flanked by women from the anti-trans group Independent Women’s Voice, including Riley Gaines, a former University of Kentucky swimmer known for criticizing an NCAA decision allowing transgender swimmer Lia Thomas to compete against her in a women’s championship race.

“Today we’re taking a stand against this out-of-control gender ideology that is eroding the very foundation of our society,” Stitt said. “We are going to be safeguarding the very essence of what it means to be a woman.

“Oklahomans are fed up with attempts to confuse the word ‘woman’ and turn it into some kind of ambiguous definition that harms real women.”

In addition to requiring state agencies and boards to define the words “female” and “male” to correspond with the person’s sex assigned at birth, the executive order also includes definitions for the words “man,” “boy,” “woman,” “girl,” “father” and “mother.” The order specifically defines a female as a “person whose biological reproductive system is designed to produce ova” and a male as a “person whose biological reproductive system is designed to fertilize the ova of a female.”

It also directs schools and other state agencies to use these definitions when collecting vital statistics and further directs schools to provide dedicated restrooms and locker room facilities for boys and girls, respectively.

Stitt’s order, dubbed “The Women’s Bill of Rights” by its supporters, is the latest Oklahoma policy to attack the rights of transgender people and is part of a growing trend in conservative states. Stitt signed a bill earlier this year that made it a crime for health care workers to provide gender-affirming medical care for minors, and has previously signed measures to prohibit transgender girls and women from playing on female sports teams and prevent transgender children from using school bathrooms that correspond to their gender identity.

“This executive order is neither about rights, nor is it about protecting women,” said Nicole McAfee, executive director of Freedom Oklahoma, which supports the rights of trans people. She called it a “thinly veiled attack” that codifies discrimination against transgender women.

House Democratic Leader Cyndi Munson accused the governor of using “partisan, polarizing politics” to further divide Oklahomans.

“Once again, the Republican supermajority continues their government overreach by infringing on the rights of citizens,” said Munson, and Oklahoma City Democrat.

Stitt’s action comes during legal battles in neighboring Kansas over the meaning of a state law that Republican legislators also christened “The Women’s Bill of Rights,” which rolled back transgender rights. It was based on language from several anti-trans groups, including Independent Women’s Voice.

Stitt also previously signed an executive order prohibiting any changes to person’s gender on birth certificates.

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Biden executive order aims to boost protections for sexual assault victims in U.S. military

Biden executive order aims to boost protections for sexual assault victims in U.S. military – CBS News

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President Biden on Friday signed an executive order meant to strengthen protections for sexual assault survivors in the U.S. armed forces by addressing how those cases are prosecuted.

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