Cotton products manufactured through slave labor in China will be detained upon entering the U.S., officials announced Wednesday.The Nov. 30 withhold release order targets Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps following recent information that the company used forced labor from internment camps in China’s Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, officials with the Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said during a press conference. The order says the Chinese government is committing systemic human rights abuses against the Uyghurs and other religious and ethnic minority groups, according to CBP. “Forced labor is not an isolated event as many believe, it’s pervasive with tens of millions of victims across the globe. These modern-day slavery networks, many of which are associated with transnational criminal organizations, generate a profit of about $150 billion annually,” CBP Acting Commissioner Mark Morgan said in a press conference Wednesday. Morgan described the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps (XPCC),as a “tool of the Chinese Communist Party” that “employs an estimated 12% of Xinjiang’s population and generated 17% of its cotton-heavy industry.” .@CBP has issued a detention order on cotton products originating from XPCC. China’s systemic abuse of forced labor in the Xinjiang Region should

The South Korean Parliament passed a bill that will enable the South Korean-pop band BTS and other singers to delay mandatory military service until they turn 30, two years after the required age, The Telegraph India reported. BTS at the 2017 American Music Awards at the Microsoft Theatre LA. By Featureflash Photo Agency. Shutterstock. Two members of the seven-boy band, Jin and Suga, will turn 28 soon, reported The Telegraph India. In South Korea, able-bodied men who are between the ages of 18 to 28 must serve in the military for two years, according to The New York Times. Provided South Korea does not have any extraordinary reason, the revised Military Service Act states “a pop culture artist who was recommended by the Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism to have greatly enhanced the image of Korea both within the nation and throughout the world” can delay service until age 30. (RELATED: World Superstars BTS Launch Hot Air Balloon That Will Travel From London To Seoul) Prior to this update, the Military Service Act delayed serving time for classical musicians, athletes and those in Ph.D. programs abroad, Telegraph India reported. The members

A former Canadian defense minister said that he eliminated the nation’s special forces regiment to mend its reputation and fix its cultural problems after the Somalia affair, Guardian Australia reported. Canadian flag in front of Old City Hall in Toronto. By Joshua Davenport. Shutterstock. In 1991, soldiers from Canada’s elite Airborne Regiment tortured and killed a 16-year-old Somali boy during the United Nations peacekeeping mission in Somalia, Guardian Australia reported. Additionally, photos of Canadian soldiers posing with the boy and videos of them making racist remarks and participating in hazing rituals surfaced. As a result, David Collenette eliminated the country’s special forces regiment. A similar move is now being considered by the Australian Defense Force, reported The Guardian. The Guardian had obtained photos of two Australian soldiers dancing with a prosthetic leg that belonged to a suspected Taliban fighter, the outlet reported. (RELATED: Report: Photos Emerge Of Soldier Chugging Beer Out Of Dead Taliban Soldier’s Prosthetic Leg) “I’m not saying that just because Canada did it, other countries have to follow our lead,” David Collenette, the Canadian defense minister, said,

The International Criminal Police Organization (INTERPOL) issued a global alert Tuesday warning that organized crime networks were taking advantage of the rush to administer coronavirus vaccines.While the pandemic has already “triggered unprecedented opportunistic and predatory criminal behaviour,” some individuals have advertised, sold, and administered fake coronavirus vaccines, INTERPOL said in a news release. The organization emphasized the need to ensure the safety of the vaccine supply chain as countries come closer to widely administering the vaccine. “As governments are preparing to roll out vaccines, criminal organizations are planning to infiltrate or disrupt supply chains,” INTERPOL Secretary General Jürgen Stock said. “Criminal networks will also be targeting unsuspecting members of the public via fake websites and false cures, which could pose a significant risk to their health, even their lives.” (RELATED: Russian President Vladimir Putin Reportedly Orders Teachers, Doctors To Get Russian COVID-19 Vaccine) “It is essential that law enforcement is as prepared as possible for what will be an onslaught of all types of criminal activity linked to the COVID-19 vaccine, which is why INTERPOL has issued this global warning,” Stock added. ???? BREAKING: INTERPOL has issued a global alert to law enforcement across its 194 member countries warning

The ban on non-essential travel between the U.S. and Canada is expected to go on into next year due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, U.S. News reported Tuesday.Restrictions on travel between the countries were first implemented in March and have been extended monthly, U.S. News reported. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced the most recent extension of the orders on Tuesday. “Until the virus is significantly more under control everywhere around the world, we’re not going to be releasing the restrictions at the border,” Trudeau said, U.S. News reported. Canada not ready to loosen border restrictions with US as COVID-19 spikes https://t.co/Z9Ze5jeBBq pic.twitter.com/MjgSQl9qF4 — The Hill (@thehill) December 1, 2020 The ban on non-essential travel does not restrict trade between the U.S. and Canada, U.S. News reported. (RELATED: US Extends Mexico, Canada Border Lockdowns For Additional 30 Days) “We are incredibly lucky that trade in essential goods – in agricultural products, in pharmaceuticals – is flowing back and forth as it always has. It’s just not people traveling, which I think is the important thing,” Trudeau said, U.S. News reported. Trudeau extended travel restrictions between the countries for an additional 30 days on Nov. 20, spanning until

Lilia Sudakova, a Russian Vogue model, stabbed her husband through the heart after he brought another woman home from a bar, The New York Post reports. Sudakova reportedly told investigators she killed Sergey Popov after Popov flirted with the other woman in front of her. Russian Vogue model stabbed husband after he brought home another woman: report https://t.co/B8JaoPGDl9 pic.twitter.com/I0hb1UryTW — New York Post (@nypost) December 2, 2020 Irena Sudakova, Lilia’s mother, reportedly said that her daughter was acting in self-defense after being a long-time victim of domestic violence. (RELATED: Model Jaime King Receives Temporary Restraining Order Against Her Husband Kyle Newman)  “Lilia is a victim, it was self-defense,” Irena reportedly said regarding the altercation. Popov allegedly insisted that Lilia cook for him and the woman from the bar before Popov kicked and grabbed Lilia. Irena reportedly said that Lilia initially assumed she had just cut her husband. “At that moment, she waved him away and accidentally stuck a knife into him,” Lilia’s mother reportedly said in a statement. Lilia has allegedly been charged with manslaughter and has been detained by authorities in pretrial custody for two months. Lilia has previously appeared on the cover of Russian Vogue magazine

The United Kingdom authorized Pfizer’s coronavirus vaccine for emergency use Wednesday, becoming the first country to authorize a vaccine backed by promising clinical trial results.The vaccine, developed in partnership with the Germany drug maker BioNTech, is set to begin distribution across Britain next week, the government said in a release. The initial batch of approximately 800,000 doses will go to health care workers, nursing home residents and other elderly people, according to NBC News. “It’s fantastic,” U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson said Wednesday. “It’s the protection of vaccines that will ultimately allow us to reclaim our lives and get the economy moving again.” His message was echoed by Matt Hancock, Britain’s Health Secretary, who said the country that “help is on its way.” Help is on its way. The MHRA has formally authorised the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine for Covid-19. The NHS stands ready to start vaccinating early next week. The UK is the first country in the world to have a clinically approved vaccine for supply. — Matt Hancock (@MattHancock) December 2, 2020 The announcement is likely to be followed by similar ones in the United States, as Pfizer and Moderna have both applied for emergency use authorization from

Representatives of the Taliban and the Afghan government announced a preliminary deal Wednesday to further pursue peace talks.  The formal, written agreement is the first of its kind to be reached between the two parties in their 19-year conflict, according to Reuters. The deal currently only serves as a pathway forward for further negotiations, but is considered important because it will permit the representatives from each side to begin discussing more important topics, Reuters reported.  1/4 I welcome the news from #Doha that the two Afghan sides have reached a significant milestone: A three-page agreement codifing rules and procedures for their negotiations on a political roadmap and a comprehensive ceasefire. — U.S. Special Representative Zalmay Khalilzad (@US4AfghanPeace) December 2, 2020 The deal is the result of months of negotiations in Qatar which were encouraged by various western governments and international bodies, including the United States. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo released a statement Wednesday that said, in part, “This achievement demonstrates that the Afghan Islamic Republic and Taliban are serious, able to overcome differences, and ready to deal with difficult issues.” Onlookers hope the next step in the process will be a ceasefire agreement. Taliban fighters have refused

A United Kingdom high court ruled Tuesday that children under the age of 16 are “unlikely” to be mature enough “to be able to give informed consent” to puberty blocking drugs.“It is highly unlikely that a child aged 13 or under would be competent to give consent to the administration of puberty blockers,” three senior judges said, according to the Guardian. “It is doubtful that a child aged 14 or 15 could understand and weigh the long-term risks and consequences of the administration of puberty blockers.” Dame Victoria Sharp, president of the Queen’s bench division, Lord Justice Lewis and Mrs Justice Lieven ruled that for teenagers under 18, a doctor may have to obtain authorization from the courts before medical intervention, the Guardian reported. The judges also said that a child under 16 may only consent to puberty blockers “where he or she is competent to understand the nature of the treatment,” noting that it could be enormously difficult for young children to properly weigh and decide on this information. (RELATED: ‘I’m A Little Shy’: Video Shows Adults Leading 4-Year-Old Toddler To Stage, Prompting Child To Announce New Sexual Identity As A Girl) I’ve been following this debate for

French President Emmanuel Macron announced new restrictions Tuesday that will dissuade French citizens from skiing in countries like Switzerland, where slopes remain open.President Emmanuel Macron said that details of the measures have yet to be finalized, but that they will be “restrictive,” according to ABC News. Ski slopes in France will stay closed throughout the Christmas season to stop the spread of coronavirus, Macron said. “If there are countries … which maintain their ski resorts open, we will have to take control measures,” Macron said, ABC News reported. “We will take restrictive and dissuasive measures,” he said. (RELATED: Macron Trolls Trump, Says Biden Can Help ‘Make Our Planet Great Again’) French President Emmanuel Macron commented on the status of French ski slopes during a Tuesday press conference with Belgium Prime Minister Alexander De Croo. (Benoit Tessier/Pool/AFP via Getty Images) France Prime Minister Jean Castex announced restrictions on ski slopes last week, according to ABC News. While winter sports resorts would be allowed to open during the