General news

• This US sports retailer has announced it will no longer sell assault-style rifles

  28-02-2018 23:59
  In a series of tweets, Dick’s Sporting Goods announced a number of changes to their policies on selling guns.
  
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• It's snowing - Can I refuse to go to work?

  28-02-2018 23:39 via bbc.co.uk
  What are your legal rights if the weather means you are unable to make it into work?
  
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• UK weather: Timelapse of London snowfall

  28-02-2018 23:22 via bbc.co.uk
  How the capital's skyline was transformed by the wintry weather.
  
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• Three teens charged with murder after stabbing in west London

  28-02-2018 22:01
  Three teenagers will appear in court charged with the murder of a 19-year-old man in west London.Metropolitan Police have charged a 16-year-old boy with murder in relation to the death of Lewis Blackman following a party in Logan Place, just north of Earls Court, in the early hours of 18 February.Another 16-year-old boy and a 17-year-old boy have also been charged with murder, as well as violent disorder.
  
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• Leicester explosion: Police make three manslaughter arrests

  28-02-2018 20:33 via bbc.co.uk
  Police investigating a fatal explosion in Leicester arrest three men on suspicion of manslaughter.
  
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• Extreme weather prompts red alert as man dies in freezing water

  28-02-2018 20:33
  Motorists are warned to stay off the roads in a sign over the M8 near Glasgow.Parts of the UK are on red alert as heavy snow continues to fall across much of the country, closing schools, delaying medical operations and causing widespread travel disruption.A red warning means extreme weather is expected, with widespread damage, disruption to travel and power, and risk to life all likely.
  
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• Charities respond to record number of alerts over rough sleeping

  28-02-2018 20:19
  Homelessness outreach teams have helped more than 1,000 people facing nights sleeping outside in subzero temperatures in England and Wales, after alerts from the public.Charities said record numbers of referrals had been received over the past three days via the StreetLink phone app – which enables the public to help street sleepers – reflecting heightened concern as temperatures have dropped.With much of the UK blanketed in snow, many local authorities kept emergency night shelters
  
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• All eyes on Theresa May's Brexit speech amid friction over Irish border

  28-02-2018 20:16
  Theresa May will give her much anticipated Brexit speech on Friday.Theresa May was facing intense pressure to spell out how she aims to avoid a hard Irish border in her much heralded Brexit speech on Friday, as the Irish prime minister angrily accused her of reneging on an earlier agreement with the EU on the issue.The taoiseach, Leo Varadkar, said it was unacceptable for May or other UK politicians to dismiss the EU’s proposals for the Northern Ireland-Republic of Ireland border, as outli
  
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• Boris Johnson could face investigation over Thames garden bridge

  28-02-2018 19:58
  Boris Johnson is due to give evidence about the project to London assembly committee on Thursday.Boris Johnson could be investigated for misconduct in public office if it is shown that political pressure from him while London mayor played a role in the loss of more than £40m of public money on the city’s abandoned garden bridge, a senior lawyer has said.Labour and the Liberal Democrats also said Johnson should face scrutiny over his role in a project he strongly supported, and which
  
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• Carl Sargeant death: Welsh leader pressured to publish report

  28-02-2018 19:56
  Carl Sargeant apparently killed himself four days after he was sacked as a government minister.Pressure on the Welsh first minister over the death of the Labour politician Carl Sargeant has grown after opposition parties won a vote in the national assembly demanding the publication of a report on events surrounding the tragedy.Sargeant is believed to have killed himself four days after he was removed from his post as a minister following unspecified allegations of sexual harassment, which he den
  
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• Three men arrested after Leicester explosion

  28-02-2018 19:53
  Three men have been arrested on suspicion of manslaughter after five people died in an explosion in Leicester, police have said.Leicestershire Police have been investigating the cause of the blast, which happened at a Polish supermarket with two flats above it in Hinckley Road at just after 7pm on Sunday.One man comes from East Anglia, one is from the North West, and the other is from the East Midlands.
  
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• EU says to regulate Northern Irish trade unless Britain acts fast

  28-02-2018 19:53
  The European Union on Wednesday laid out how it would regulate Northern Ireland's trade if no better solution was found in the fast-closing window before Britain's departure from the EU, prompting furious reactions in London and Belfast.Brussels' chief negotiator Michel Barnier, presenting the EU's draft of an exit treaty for Britain, denied that the proposal, intended to avoid a disruptive EU-UK "hard border" on the island of Ireland, would loosen Northern Ireland's constitutional ties to the r
  
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• UK Weather: Man Dies In Hospital After Pulled From The Water In Danson Park, London

  28-02-2018 19:51
  A man has died in hospital after being pulled from the water at Danson Park, in Welling, south east London, Scotland Yard said.A Metropolitan Police spokesman said: “Police were called by the London Ambulance Service at approximately 15.55 on Wednesday, 28 February to reports of a man in the water at Danson Park in Bexleyheath.“Officers and London’s Air Ambulance attended.
  
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• Anti-Brexit MEPs defect from Conservatives' EU group

  28-02-2018 19:46
  Two prominent British Conservative members of the European Parliament quit the Tories' Brussels group on Wednesday to join the main, pro-EU centre-right bloc as Brexit continues to divide Britain's ruling party."The activities and approach of the EPP (European People's Party) will more effectively further the prospects of achieving the best possible future for our constituents," Julie Girling and Richard Ashworth said in a statement announcing they had left the European Conservatives and Reformi
  
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• Travel chaos as heavy snow cancels trains and shuts airports across UK

  28-02-2018 19:38
  Commuters are being advised to leave work early this evening as "blizzard-like" conditions sweep across much of the UK.The extreme weather has intensified since parts of the UK were blanketed with snow on Tuesday, with the highest possible level of weather warning issued for Scotland and Ireland by the Met Office.In central Scotland, ScotRail has cancelled all services from 6pm until 10am on Thursday.
  
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• UK Weather: Record Number Raise Alarm About Rough Sleepers To Save Them From Sub-Zero Temperatures

  28-02-2018 19:37
  A record 3,600-plus alerts have been sent to an app that helps rough sleepers find shelter as the brutal weather has heightened fears for the homeless.The referrals sent to StreetLink between Monday and Tuesday this week was the highest number the group has received in a 24-hour period.The app, which lets members of the public alert homelessness agencies if they fear for the safety of those on the streets, has received more than 2,000 messages in London alone.
  
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• In the land of the Brexit blind, one-eyed John Major proves king

  28-02-2018 19:28
  Compared with Theresa May, John Major came across as a latter day Cicero.When John Major was prime minister, he seemed a colourless master of mediocrity fighting an often losing battle against the Eurosceptic bastards and bed-hopping members of his own party.For his “Big Brexit” speech – every Brexit speech comes pre-billed as “big” these days – Major had come to a crypt-like corridor in the basement of Somerset House to address a home crowd audience of the Cr
  
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• Girl, seven, sends letter reprimanding Royal Mail staff over dumped rubber bands

  28-02-2018 19:24
  Gracie Roberts wrote the letter after becoming annoyed at the danger to wildlife.
  
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• Outdated thinking 'is still holding female TV writers back'

  28-02-2018 19:23
  More than 70 female TV writers have accused British drama bosses of failing to give them opportunities to write for the biggest primetime shows.In an open letter to commissioners, 76 women, whose credits include high-profile shows such as EastEnders, Midsomer Murders and How to Get Away With Murder, said British drama was “overwhelmingly written by men”.The signatories, including Sally Abbott, who created The Coroner, the writer and actress Sarah Solemani and the Bafta-nominated writ
  
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• John Major calls for Commons vote on second referendum

  28-02-2018 19:20
  Former British prime minister John Major has called for a free vote in parliament on whether to hold a second EU referendum.Major, who helped build the groundwork for peace in Northern Ireland, also hit out at recent calls to ignore the dangers of restoring border control.
  
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• Toyota to build new Auris model in the UK

  28-02-2018 19:00
  Toyota has announced that it will build the third generation of its Auris model in the UK.The new hatchback will be made at Toyota's plant in Burnaston, Derbyshire, with the main source for the car's engines to be the Deeside site in North Wales.Johan van Zyl, Toyota Motor Europe president and chief executive, made the announcement during a visit to Burnaston on Wednesday.
  
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• Irish PM shows frustration with UK over Brexit border deal

  28-02-2018 18:43
  The Irish prime minister has said it is “not OK” for Theresa May to renege on a deal involving a “backstop” solution to the Irish border question that could mean Northern Ireland remaining in the customs union.Dublin showed growing signs of frustration with the British government on Wednesday after the UK prime minister appeared to retreat from the agreement she made in December.The taoiseach, Leo Varadkar, said the 119-page draft Brexit treaty unveiled in Brussels was me
  
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• HMP Peterborough jailbreak inmate scaled wall 'like Spiderman'

  28-02-2018 18:33 via bbc.co.uk
  Gintautas Urbonas, 52, used a rope made of face towels to help his escape.
  
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• UK weather: Snow continues to hit the UK

  28-02-2018 18:26 via bbc.co.uk
  Cold weather and heavy snow continue, causing disruption but also picturesque scenes
  
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• Thousands of jobs at risk as Maplin and Toys R Us fall into administration - business live

  28-02-2018 18:23 via theguardian.com
  UK retail gloom as two chains employing 5,500 people call in the administratorsBREAKING: Maplin calls in administratorsWeak sterling and low consumer confidence blamed2,500 jobs at riskEarlier:Toys R Us has fallen into administration
  Attempts to find a buyer seem to have failed
  Stores will keep trading ‘until further notice’3,000 staff face uncertainty 5.23pm GMT Over in the City of London, the FTSE 100 index of top shares has closed down 50 points or 0.7% at 7231.Firstly, the squeez
  
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• PG Tips to remove plastic from its tea bags

  28-02-2018 18:22
  PG Tips is to stop using plastic in its tea bags after more than 200,000 people signed an online petition demanding it switch to a biodegradable material.Tea bags are often sealed using a heat-resistant plastic, polypropylene.The innovation, introduced to reduce the product's environmental impact, is based on "cutting-edge science and technology", the company added.
  
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• Dollar gains on Powell's economic outlook, world stocks slip

  28-02-2018 18:16
  NEW YORK (Reuters) - The dollar rose to five-week highs on Wednesday after an upbeat outlook of the U.S. economy from the Federal Reserve's new chief and the prospect of tighter monetary policy, while global equity markets slid on big declines in China-dependent shares.
  
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• Pep Guardiola may argue revealing yellow ribbon was unintended

  28-02-2018 18:13 via theguardian.com
  • Guardiola’s jacket had concealed ribbon during first half at Wigan
  • Catalan thanks fans for backing gesture in support of politiciansPep Guardiola may argue he unwittingly broke Football Association rules by revealing the yellow ribbon only by accident during the second half of Manchester City’s defeat at Wigan Athletic.On Friday the Catalan was charged with “wearing a political message” and has until Monday to answer the count. The rule applies only to what
  
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• Met Office issues red weather warning as snow disrupts Britain – live updates

  28-02-2018 18:10 via theguardian.com
  Hundreds of schools are still closed as Met Office issues red warning for central of ScotlandShare your photos and storiesEmergency shelters opened for homeless people in cold snap 5.10pm GMT This is Nicola Slawson taking over from Kevin Rawlinson. In Scotland, which is being hardest hit by the “beast from the east”, Edinburgh airport remains open despite “most airlines” having cancelled their operations. Most airlines have cancelled their operations from Edinburgh Airpor
  
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• Catastrophe looms if we fail to tackle diabetes

  28-02-2018 18:09
  A woman injecting insulin with a hypodermic syringe. ‘Once diagnosed, patients should be supported every step of the way,’ writes Keith Vaz.The crisis in diabetes (Health alert as diabetes cases double to 3.7m, 27 February) is only going to get worse.The system desperately needs a robust and uncompromising attack on the causes of type 2 diabetes and resolute support for those with type 1.
  
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• Pupils versus teachers snowball fight

  28-02-2018 18:07 via bbc.co.uk
  The primary school head teacher who let his pupils take on teachers in a snowball fight.
  
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• Jewish activists urge Labour not to reinstate Ken Livingstone

  28-02-2018 18:01 via theguardian.com
  Members of Jewish Labour Movement say allowing return of former London mayor could damage chances in May electionsSenior Jewish activists have urged Labour’s ruling body not to allow the former London mayor Ken Livingstone back into the party, warning that it could damage the party’s chances in May’s local elections.Members of the Jewish Labour Movement (JLM), including the MP Luciana Berger, have written privately to the national executive committee to warn of the damage that
  
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• ‘I have a post-9/11 mentality’: creating art while Muslim in Australia

  28-02-2018 18:00 via theguardian.com
  In a visceral new exhibition at the Adelaide festival, 11 multidisciplinary artists reflect on racism, representation and spiritual epiphaniesLight flashes upon 11 television screens the refugee artist and former hip-hop performer Khaled Sabsabi has arrayed in a circle on the floor. The formula for calculating the speed of light is printed nearby in five languages, including Arabic and English, acknowledging that diverging cultures share energy, space and time. If we could enter unseen realms, h
  
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• Olly Murphy shows ambition in his pursuit of Cheltenham riders

  28-02-2018 17:56 via theguardian.com
  • Trainer, 26, has targeted Jack Kennedy and Richard Johnson
  • Murphy to restrict number of horses he sends to FestivalOlly Murphy has not yet broken into the top echelon of jumps trainers but you would not know it from the quality of rider the rookie hopes to employ at the Cheltenham Festival a fortnight from now. The 26-year-old said on Wednesday that he expects Jack Kennedy to be aboard Hunters Call in the County Hurdle, for which the horse is second‑favourite, and the trainer
  
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• Latest: Red alert for Scotland as snow and freezing winds sweep country

  28-02-2018 17:55
  Latest: Red alert for Scotland as snow and freezing winds sweep country
  
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• Prosecutors investigate owners of two luxury British properties

  28-02-2018 17:54
  British prosecutors are using new powers to crack down on illicit cash laundered through the country's luxury real estate, launching investigations into the owners of two properties worth around 22 million pounds.The National Crime Agency (NCA) said on Wednesday it had secured the country's first unexplained wealth orders (UWO) to examine one property in London and another in southeast England, worth more than 11 million pounds each, and believed to be owned by overseas politicians, officials or
  
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• The Metropolitan Police received a lovely message written on their car in the snow

  28-02-2018 17:53
  The message raised the spirits of police officers working in the cold.
  
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• Peru moves to create huge new indigenous reserves in Amazon

  28-02-2018 17:52 via theguardian.com
  Major step taken by government Multi-Sector Commission following 15 year processTwo “naked” people spotted hunting armadillo. One “naked” family on a river-bank. About five other “naked” people - plus houses, settlements and crops - seen from small planes. Fresh footprints on a path, on a tree trunk, and along a Canadian oil company’s seismic lines. Noises in the night. Whistling and birdsong imitation. A loosed arrow. Fishing utensils, abandoned fires,
  
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• Love from a Stranger review – Agatha Christie chiller is glorious tosh

  28-02-2018 17:46 via theguardian.com
  Royal & Derngate, Northampton
  Audience expectations are gleefully derailed as Lucy Bailey directs this creepy tale of love and liesSneered at for so long as a dramatist, Agatha Christie is having her moment in the sun, courtesy of director Lucy Bailey. At County Hall in London, Bailey’s revival of Witness for the Prosecution has been packing them in for months. Now Bailey turns her attention to one of Christie’s lesser-known psychological chillers, which began life in 1934 as a s
  
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• Facebook's EU regulator says WhatsApp yet to resolve data sharing issue

  28-02-2018 17:40
  WhatsApp has still not brought forward proposals to address EU regulators' concerns over the messaging service's sharing of user data with parent company Facebook, Facebook's European regulator said on Wednesday.The popular messaging service changed its privacy policy over a year ago to start sharing users' phone numbers and other information with Facebook.
  
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• Q&A: What does all this snow mean for climate change?

  28-02-2018 17:39 via theguardian.com
  Why are scientists worried about freezing temperatures in winter, is the beast from the east a freak event – and what is the polar vortex?Q: Snow in winter. That feels reassuringly normal. Does this mean the climate has fixed itself?A: Unfortunately not. In fact, many scientists are concerned this is a prelude to more extreme and less predictable weather. Continue reading...
  
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• The legume boom: how we went nuts for posh peanut butter

  28-02-2018 17:35 via theguardian.com
  The stalwart spread is undergoing a huge boost in popularity as artisan versions favoured by gym bunnies and healthy eaters are driving salesIn 2012, Stuart Franklin and his wife Kathryn returned to the UK after seven years in New Zealand. During their time there, they set up Proper Crisps, Australasia’s first manufacturer of handmade crisps. Back in their native Yorkshire after selling their business, life was good, but they found they were missing one thing about New Zealand more than an
  
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• Theresa May concedes on EU migrants' residency rights during Brexit transition

  28-02-2018 17:32 via theguardian.com
  Major climbdown revealed by Home Office as EU citizens will have right to settle permanentlyTheresa May has conceded that new EU migrants who come to Britain during the Brexit transition will have the right to settle permanently in the UK, in a major climbdown over future residency rights.The concession, slipped out in a Brexit policy paper by the Home Office, also makes clear that new EU migrants who arrive after March 2019 will be given a five-year temporary residence permit, not the two-year
  
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• Britain's High Street In Crisis As Two Household Names Collapse On Same Day

  28-02-2018 17:29
  Electronics store Maplin and Toys ‘R’ Us both announced they were going into administration, putting more than 5,500 jobs at risk in their stores, with Maplin blaming in part the fall in the pound’s value since the 2016 referendum.The announcements came within an hour of each other on Wednesday, the same day estate agent Foxtons announced a 65% fall in profits that it blamed partly on “political uncertainty” and its affect on house sales in London.Also on Wednesday,
  
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• Now we know it: Labour has a problem with respecting women | LabourToo

  28-02-2018 17:25 via theguardian.com
  The heartbreaking reports we’ve heard of harassment and abuse within the party show that Labour isn’t living its values• I was assaulted by a Labour colleague, but the party didn’t take it seriouslyMaya Angelou wrote, “There is no greater agony like bearing an untold story inside of you.” Our report of women’s experiences of sexual harassment, abuse and discrimination in the Labour party sought to give that voice to those untold stories.In October, as the
  
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• Stephen Colbert mocks Kushner's downgrade: 'How will he fix the Middle East now?'

  28-02-2018 17:21 via theguardian.com
  Late-night hosts discussed Jared Kushner’s security clearance loss and Trump’s response to the opioid epidemicLate-night hosts on Tuesday discussed senior White House adviser Jared Kushner’s demotion, potential Russian interference in the 2018 midterms and the opioid epidemic. Related: Late-night hosts on Trump's Parkland comments: 'We already know how you react to combat'Continue reading...
  
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• Skier in Glasgow's East End

  28-02-2018 17:21 via bbc.co.uk
  When the roads are gridlocked and the trains are cancelled, you can always ski to get around.
  
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• Paris: nerves abound at first Lanvin show under Chinese owner

  28-02-2018 17:20 via theguardian.com
  Did designer Olivier Lapidus do enough to keep his job at France’s oldest fashion house?Lanvin, the oldest surviving house in French fashion, took to the Paris catwalk on Wednesday for its first outing since being bought by Fosun, the Chinese conglomerate that also owns Club Med.The deal is significant at Paris fashion week, where most heritage brands are still owned by French-based groups. It is the highest-profile fashion acquisition to date for the Chinese group, which also owns a stake
  
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• Ex-Trump aide Paul Manafort faces trial in September

  28-02-2018 17:16 via theguardian.com
  Special counsel Robert Mueller is dialing up the legal pressure on Manafort, who is not cooperating with investigators on Russia investigationDonald Trump’s former campaign manager Paul Manafort pleaded not guilty on Wednesday to a new indictment brought against him in the investigation into alleged Russian meddling in the 2016 election and will face trial in September.Special counsel Robert Mueller, who is running the Russia investigation , is dialing up the legal pressure on Manafort, wh
  
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• Wanted: pagan chaplains for Britain’s prisons

  28-02-2018 17:07
  ‘Communing with nature is problematic in a prison setting’... pagans celebrate the Lammas Day festival.Seven pagan chaplains are being sought to minister to inmates at prisons around the country.The vacancies, listed on the civil service jobs website, come with a pro rata salary of up to £29,176.
  
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