All posts tagged: Handing

U.S. eases Iranian oil sanctions in scramble to contain energy prices, handing Tehran a boost

U.S. eases Iranian oil sanctions in scramble to contain energy prices, handing Tehran a boost

Published by Sam Flores

In a twist of wartime irony, the United States has moved to ease sanctions on Iranian oil to cool surging energy prices, a potential boon for Tehran as Washington scrambles to contain the economic shockwaves of its military campaign. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Friday the easing of sanctions, first imposed after Iran’s 1979 revolution, would be “narrowly tailored” and only temporary, “permitting the sale of Iranian oil currently stranded at sea.” “By temporarily unlocking this existing supply for the world, the United States will quickly bring approximately 140 million barrels of oil to global markets, expanding the amount of worldwide energy and helping to relieve the temporary pressures on supply caused by Iran,” Bessent added. About 20% of the oil that the world consumes every day travels via the Strait of Hormuz, which runs along part of Iran’s coast. But since the war began at the end of February, shipping in the channel has come to a halt. Retail gas prices have risen 93 cents per gallon and U.S. crude oil has soared more …

NASA May Shrink Boeing’s Moon-Mission Role While Handing SpaceX Core Rocket Responsibilities

NASA May Shrink Boeing’s Moon-Mission Role While Handing SpaceX Core Rocket Responsibilities

Published by Jenni Sidey

President Donald Trump’s NASA chief could soon announce Boeing’s diminishing role in returning astronauts to the Moon, while leaning heavily on Elon Musk’s SpaceX rocket company to do the heavy lifting. Boeing’s Space Launch System (SLS), originally the rocket backbone of the Artemis mission, would no longer carry the Lockheed Martin-built Orion crew capsule to the Moon. Under the new plan, SpaceX’s Starship would take the lead. NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman plans to meet with the companies working on the Artemis program next Tuesday, including Boeing, SpaceX, and Blue Origin, to discuss progress and current paths forward. Sources close to the program said any significant changes could face immediate Congressional scrutiny. “NASA is committed to using the SLS architecture through at least Artemis V, which is necessary to support both human landing system providers, and their associated acceleration plans to return American astronauts to the Moon,” Isaacman said in a statement. “We’re incredibly supportive of both our HLS providers and their plans to accelerate America’s path forward to the moon,” Isaacman added. SpaceX will ultimately …

Government Handing Out Cash Bonuses to Drug Researchers Who Rush Through Regulatory Approvals

Government Handing Out Cash Bonuses to Drug Researchers Who Rush Through Regulatory Approvals

Published by José Betancourt

Sign up to see the future, today Can’t-miss innovations from the bleeding edge of science and tech Not even a year after the US Food and Drug Administration announced it was using generative AI to speed up the drug review process, the agency has another bold announcement: employees who make quick work of their assignments will be handsomely rewarded for their dedication. According to the Associated Press, FDA commissioner Marty Makary recently unveiled a new “pilot program” involving cash bonuses for drug reviewers who complete their work ahead of schedule. The reward for fast regulatory work will come in the form of a quarterly bonus, to be paid out to FDA staffers starting in August. Per the AP, payment amounts will be based on vague “weighted time savings,” as well as “work quality and work complexity.” “My job as your commissioner is to be your advocate and to fight for you,” Makary told drug reviewers in a presentation viewed by the AP. “If you don’t like it, we can get rid of it, but usually …

Spain is handing ‘crown jewels’ to Huawei, lawmakers warn – POLITICO

Spain is handing ‘crown jewels’ to Huawei, lawmakers warn – POLITICO

Published by Sam Flores

The Spanish government has defended the contract it struck for storing wiretaps. Spain’s Interior Ministry said in a statement that the government had awarded a contract to “European companies,” which then bought storage products. “There is no risk to security, technological and legal sovereignty, nor is there any foreign interference or threat to the custody of evidence,” the ministry said. Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska told the Spanish parliament last September that Telefónica, the country’s telecom champion, operated a state surveillance system called SITEL and that storage “cabinets” had been integrated into that system.   Bloomberg reported last July that Huawei equipment is not used for classified information, with one government official saying the storage “represents a minor part of a watertight, audited, isolated and certified system.” On Monday, Juan Fernando López Aguilar, a prominent member of the European Parliament for the Socialists and Democrats group and a member of Prime Minister Pedro Sanchéz’s party in Spain, defended Madrid’s contract and pushed back on EU moves to intervene on the issue. In terms of “security, espionage, or …

Bangladesh’s interim leader Yunus resigns, handing power to elected government

Bangladesh’s interim leader Yunus resigns, handing power to elected government

Published by Sam Flores

Bangladesh’s interim leader Muhammad Yunus stepped down on Monday in a farewell broadcast to the nation before handing over to an elected government. “Today, the interim government is stepping down,” the 85-year-old Nobel Peace Prize winner said. “But let the practice of democracy, freedom of speech, and fundamental rights that has begun not be halted.” Yunus returned from self-imposed exile in August 2024, days after the iron-fisted government of Sheikh Hasina was overthrown by a student-led uprising and she fled by helicopter to India. Read moreBangladesh’s ousted leader Sheikh Hasina sentenced to death for crimes against humanity “That was the day of great liberation,” he said. “What a day of joy it was! Bangladeshis across the world shed tears of happiness. The youth of our country freed it from the grip of a demon.” He has led Bangladesh as its “chief adviser” since, and now hands over power after congratulating the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) and its leader Tarique Rahman on a “landslide victory” in elections last week. “The people, voters, political parties, and stakeholder …

U.S. handing over seized tanker to Venezuela, officials say: Reuters

U.S. handing over seized tanker to Venezuela, officials say: Reuters

Published by Sam Flores

People walk in front of a crude oil tanker at Maracaibo Lake in Maracaibo, Venezuela, on January 12, 2026. After the US raid that deposed Nicolas Maduro as Venezuela’s leader, citizens hope the ensuing talks on selling its oil to US may improve their dire economic fortunes. (Photo by Margioni BERMÚDEZ / AFP via Getty Images) Margioni Bermudez | Afp | Getty Images The United States is handing over to Venezuela a tanker that it seized this month, two U.S. officials told Reuters on Wednesday. The United States has been carrying out a months-long effort to seize oil tankers linked to Venezuela – carrying out seven apprehensions since late last year. The officials, who were speaking on the condition of anonymity, identified the vessel being handed over to Venezuelan authorities as the Panama-flagged supertanker M/T Sophia. They did not say why the tanker was returned. The U.S. Coast Guard, which leads interdiction and seizure operations, did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The Venezuelan communications ministry, which handles all press queries for the government, did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The Sophia was carrying oil when it was interdicted on Jan. 7 by the Coast Guard and …

H. Samuel is handing out free diamond rings — here’s how to claim yours

H. Samuel is handing out free diamond rings — here’s how to claim yours

Published by Sam Flores

Diamonds are a girl’s best friend. But you know what else is a girl’s best friend? Free things. For a limited time, the high-street jeweller is giving customers a free lab-grown diamond ring worth up to £750 when they spend a certain amount on selected diamond jewellery. So it’s basically a buy one heirloom, get another free deal. Who doesn’t love the sound of that? Here’s how it works: spend £500 or more on selected natural or lab-grown diamond jewellery, and you’ll receive a complimentary 0.5 carat lab-grown diamond ring, valued at £500. Spend £750 or more, and that free ring gets upgraded to a 1-carat lab-grown diamond ring, worth £750. In both cases, customers can choose their ring size, with the gifted ring arriving in a sleek silver setting. How are lab-grown diamonds made? Also known as man-made or cultured diamonds, lab-grown diamonds are literal carbon copies of the gems found in the earth, except that they take less than a month to develop in a controlled environment. Scientists take tiny diamond ‘seeds’ and …

Smithsonian Responds to White House Pressure by Handing Over More Plans on Its Exhibits

Smithsonian Responds to White House Pressure by Handing Over More Plans on Its Exhibits

Published by Sam Flores

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Smithsonian Institution gave the White House new documents on its planned exhibits Tuesday in response to a demand to share precise details of what its museums and other programs are doing for America’s 250th birthday. For months, President Donald Trump has been pressing the Smithsonian to back off “divisive narratives” and tell an upbeat story on the country’s history and culture, with the threat of holding back federal money if it doesn’t. The institution is a cornerstone of American culture, operating 21 museums and a zoo that are among the most popular tourist destinations in Washington. By Tuesday, the Smithsonian was supposed to provide lists of all displays, objects, wall text and other material dedicated to this year’s anniversary and other purposes. Smithsonian Secretary Lonnie Bunch III told staff, in an email obtained by The New York Times and The Washington Post, that “we transmitted more information in response to that request.” The White House did not respond to a request for comment, leaving it unclear whether it was satisfied with …

Kremlin Makes Show Of Handing Evidence To US Side ‘Proving’ Ukrainian Attack On Putin Residence

Kremlin Makes Show Of Handing Evidence To US Side ‘Proving’ Ukrainian Attack On Putin Residence

Published by Jenni Sidey

The Kremlin has really made a big show for the cameras of handing over to American officials what it says is evidence that Ukrainian drones had attempted to strike Russian President Vladimir Putin’s residence in the Novgorod region Sunday night into Monday morning. The international community has asked for evidence Putin’s residence was targeted, and Moscow has responded. Footage released by the Russian Defense Ministry on Thursday shows Igor Kostykov, head of the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Russian General Staff, meeting with the US defense attaché in Moscow and handing over what he identified as a “navigation unit” recovered from one of the drones shot down in Novgorod. Russia has been on an information blitz, putting out images of downed drones and televised interviews of local Russian eyewitnesses to the drone waves early this week. But the ‘evidence hand-over’ to the US side is ultimately strong signaling aimed at President Trump. Kostykov described that the “decryption of the content of the memory of the navigation controller of the drones carried out by specialists of Russia’s special …