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JUST IN: South Africa’s Pistorius Released From Prison

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South Africa’s ex-Olympic runner Oscar Pistorius was released from jail on parole Friday and “is now at home”, authorities said, almost 11 years after he shot dead his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp in a crime that gripped the world.

Having served more than half his sentence, the 37-year-old double-amputee was quietly whisked out from the Atteridgeville prison on the outskirts of the capital Pretoria, avoiding the hordes of media gathered outside.

“He was admitted into the system of Community Corrections and is now at home,” the department of correctional services said in a statement.

Pistorius, known worldwide as “Blade Runner” for his carbon-fibre prosthetics, will not be allowed to speak to the media as a condition of his parole.

Prison authorities had previously warned the press that there would be no opportunity to photograph or speak to him.

Pistorius killed Steenkamp, a model who was 29 years old at the time, in the early hours of Valentine’s Day 2013, firing four times through the bathroom door of his ultra-secure Pretoria house.

The shooting came a year after Pistorius made history by being the first double-amputee to race at Olympic level when he appeared at the London 2012 games.

He was found guilty of murder and given a 13-year jail sentence in 2017 after a lengthy trial and several appeals.

He had pleaded not guilty and denied killing Steenkamp in a rage, saying he mistook her for a burglar.

Therapy Required 

A South African Police Service (SAPS) vehicle is seen outside Oscar Pistorius’ uncle’s house in Waterkloof, a suburb of Pretoria, on January 5, 2024. (Photo by Olympia DE MAISMONT / AFP)

The morning ahead of his release, Steenkamp’s mother June issued a statement saying that while she accepted the decision of the justice system and conditions of his parole, “the pain is still raw and real”.

“There can never be justice if your loved one is never coming back, and no amount of time served will bring Reeva back,” she said.

“We, who remain behind, are the ones serving a life sentence.”

Offenders in South Africa are automatically eligible for parole consideration after serving half their sentence.

Pistorius lost a first bid in March when the board found he had not completed the minimum detention period required to be let out.

The Constitutional Court in October ruled that was a mistake, paving the way for a November hearing that approved his release.

As part of his parole, until the end of his sentence in 2029, Pistorius must undergo therapy for anger and gender-based violence issues.

He will also be banned from consuming alcohol and other substances, required to complete community service and also be home at certain hours of the day.

The conditions “send out a clear message that gender based violence is taken seriously” by the country’s justice system, June Steenkamp said Friday.

AFP

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International

U.K.–India set to boost bilateral trade by over $34 billion a year

The FTA, which slashes duties on goods including textiles, alcohol and automobiles, was signed Thursday in the presence of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his UK counterpart, Keir Starmer.

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•Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his UK counterpart, Keir Starmer.

U.K. and India’s bilateral trade is set to get a more than $34 billion annual boost over the long term following their free trade agreement, with the countries’ leaders calling it a “historic” deal.

CNBC reported that the FTA, which slashes duties on goods including textiles, alcohol and automobiles, was signed on Thursday in the presence of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his UK counterpart, Keir Starmer.

Both sides had finalized the trade pact in May after three years of intense negotiations — marked by thorny issues such as visas, tariff reduction and tax breaks.

Talks gained momentum and both governments accelerated to seal the deal as U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariff threats sent the world in disarray.

The agreement between the world’s fifth and sixth largest economies is expected to boost their bilateral trade by 25.5 billion pounds per year by 2040.

Trade in goods and services stood at over 40 billion pounds in 2024.

The deal offers “huge benefits to both of our countries,” boosting wages, raising living standards and bringing down prices for consumers, Starmer said.

India’s Modi lauded the agreement as “a blueprint for our shared prosperity,” highlighting how Indian goods including textiles, jewelry, agricultural products and engineering items would benefit from a better access to the U.K. market.

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Russian missing plane found in Forest – No Survivors

Amur’s regional governor Vasily Orlov said five children were among those on board and declared three days of mourning.

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Russian officials say 48 people were killed when an Angara Airlines plane went down in a dense forest in the far-eastern Amur region.

The Antonov An-24 plane, carrying 42 passengers and six crew, had left Blagoveshchensk close to the Chinese border and vanished from radar screens as it approached Tynda airport, officials said.

A Russian civil aviation helicopter then spotted burning fuselage from the plane on a remote hillside about 16km (10 miles) from Tynda.

Amur’s regional governor Vasily Orlov said five children were among those on board and declared three days of mourning.

Orlov said that according to preliminary data, there were 43 passengers, including five children, and six crew members on board the plane operated by a Siberian airline.

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EU ready to hit US with 21-billion-euro tariff list

He said the goal should be “zero tariffs” and an open market among Canada, the United States, Mexico and Europe.

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MILAN (Reuters) -The European Union has already prepared a list of tariffs worth 21 billion euros ($24.52 billion) on U.S. goods if the two sides fail to reach a trade deal, Italy’s Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said in a newspaper interview on Monday.

President Donald Trump on Saturday threatened to impose a 30% tariff on imports from Mexico and the EU starting on Aug. 1, after weeks of negotiations with major U.S. trading partners failed to reach a comprehensive deal.

Tajani also told daily Il Messaggero that to help the euro zone economy the European Central Bank should consider a new “quantitative easing” bond-buying-programme, and more interest rate cuts.

The European Union said on Sunday it would extend its suspension of countermeasures to U.S. tariffs until early August and continue to press for a negotiated settlement.

Tajani said the 21-billion-euro package of tariffs the EU has already prepared could be followed by a second set if a deal with the U.S proves impossible.

He added, however, that he was confident that progress could be made in negotiations.

“Tariffs hurt every one, starting with the United States,” he said. “If stock markets fall that puts at risk the pensions and the savings of the Americans.”

He said the goal should be “zero tariffs” and an open market among Canada, the United States, Mexico and Europe.

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