All posts tagged: gather

Thousands gather in Ethiopia’s capital to celebrate a religious festival. Many are thinking of peace

Thousands gather in Ethiopia’s capital to celebrate a religious festival. Many are thinking of peace

Published by skeptic

ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia (AP) — Thousands of Ethiopians gathered in the capital Thursday to celebrate an annual religious festival distinguished by the lighting of bonfires according to the beliefs of the local Orthodox Christian faithful. National celebrations of the festival, known as Meskel, traditionally happen in a square by the same name in Addis Ababa. It is one of Ethiopia’s most celebrated religious holidays, marked with rituals and merriment across the country. Festivities will continue until Friday, a national holiday during which the faithful attend church services and share intimate moments with their families. In celebrations of Meskel — a word in the local Amharic language for “cross” — bonfires are burned across the country. In Meskel square Thursday, the patriarch of the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church lit a large one in the presence of thousands of believers in white costumes. Across Ethiopia, many gather in public squares and by churches to light similar bonfires from piles of logs, dry leaves and grass. Prayers and religious ceremonies are followed by a feast of “kitfo,” a …

Protesters gather in support of Israel or Palestine during Eurovision contest in Sweden

Protesters gather in support of Israel or Palestine during Eurovision contest in Sweden

Published by skeptic

Just hours before the second Eurovision semi-final, on Thursday, May 9, Malmö looked like a city under siege: Helicopters buzzed overhead, while armored vehicles and hundreds of police officers roamed the streets. This unprecedented security detail had been deployed as two demonstrations were due to take place within hours of each other in the center of Malmö: one, called for by some sixty associations, to protest against Israel’s participation in the contest; the other, organized by the Jewish community, to support the Israeli candidate. The first demonstrators gathered mid-afternoon in Malmö’s main square, which was soon awash with a sea of Palestinian flags. Signs calling for a “ceasefire in Gaza,” an “end to genocide” and a “boycott of Israel” could be seen. Families came and the crowd swelled as trains came in bringing protestors from neighboring Denmark. Read more Subscribers only Malmö prepares for a high-tension Eurovision contest In their fifties, Jeanette Volfbrandt and her friend Karima (who, like many of those interviewed, did not wish to give her family name) came from Copenhagen, as …

LAPD officers gather to clear USC campus; university warns of possible arrests

LAPD officers gather to clear USC campus; university warns of possible arrests

Published by skeptic

Share University Park Campus has been closed The University Park Campus has been closed “as a result of significant activity at the center of campus,” the university’s public safety department said in a post on X. The department also asked those remaining to leave, saying “People who don’t leave will be arrested.” Share Aerial view of the campus A KNBC chopper is over the USC campus and LAPD officers were seen pushing a group of demonstrators out of the main campus area and shutting the gates. No major clashes have been reported so far. Encampments appear largely empty and protestors seem to have moved away.KNBC LAPD officers have cleared parts of the campus.KNBC Share Police in riot gear begin clearing banners Police officers from the LAPD are wearing riot gear, according to a KNBC camera crew in the area. Officers were also seen taking down protest banners in the Instagram live of the university’s student-run Annenberg Media. Share LAPD officers gather to clear the campus; university warns of possible arrests Dozens of officers from the …

Neon, kilts, cricket bats: artisans gather to shine a light on Britain’s endangered crafts | Craft

Neon, kilts, cricket bats: artisans gather to shine a light on Britain’s endangered crafts | Craft

Published by skeptic

Nick Malyon was seduced by neon lighting at the end of the 1980s while travelling in America. He left home after failing his A-levels and doing a disastrous four-year stint as a vintage car salesman in London. “I was introduced to a sign painter and a neon signmaker, and it seemed like an alternative lifestyle to the one I’d left behind. On my return to the UK, I was probably attempting to carry on some American dream by training, but I loved the weird alchemy of illuminating a piece of bent glass tubing – the change from nothing to something.” Malyon’s art is on display this month, during London Craft Week (LCW), at the Vintage Supermarket, a Soho pop-up shop by Merchant & Found that specialises in 20th-century and industrial furniture. His work will represent one of the many endangered crafts on show this year. “Over the centuries, crafts have ebbed and flowed; some die out but others grow to replace them,” says Daniel Carpenter, executive director of Heritage Crafts, the charity that produces the annual …

Protesters Gather Outside White House Correspondents Dinner

Protesters Gather Outside White House Correspondents Dinner

Published by Sam

Hollywood stars, journalists and prominent politicians were met with a crowd of protesters of the Israel–Hamas war outside Saturday’s White House Correspondents Dinner. There has been growing public discord over the war and President Joe Biden’s handling of the conflict, as well as mainstream media’s coverage of it. This year’s event at the Washington Hilton in Washington, D.C. — where the dinner has been held for decades — is headlined by Saturday Night Live star Colin Jost, with several stars also in attendance, including Chris Pine, Molly Ringwald, Questlove and Rachel Brosnahan. Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris are also at the dinner. However, attendees were greeted by demonstrators holding banners and chanting “Free, free Palestine” and calls for a “ceasefire” as they arrived, according to videos posted on social media. At one point, protesters also dropped a Palestinian flag out of one of the Washington Hilton’s windows. Biden reportedly avoided the large protest at the front of the hotel by arriving through a back entrance. But other attendees were seen in social videos walking through …

Hundreds Gather on Sydney’s Bondi Beach to Mourn Westfield Attack Victims

Hundreds Gather on Sydney’s Bondi Beach to Mourn Westfield Attack Victims

Published by skeptic

SYDNEY (Reuters) – Hundreds gathered on Sydney’s Bondi Beach on Sunday evening, lighting candles as the sun set, to mourn the six people killed in a knife attack in the area’s Westfield shopping mall a week ago. Joel Cauchi, a 40-year-old who had suffered with mental health issues, killed five women and a male security guard in the mall on April 13 before being shot dead by police. “We think of everyone still trying to come to terms with the hole in their life where a loved one should be,” Prime Minister Antony Albanese told the crowd. “To the families and friends who are here with us, and to all who are with us in spirit, please know this – that every Australian is thinking of you.” A local choir sang hymns. “I think the atmosphere was quite calming, just relaxing and understanding,” said Mona Lemoto, who was at the event. “I think there was a lot of connection and really respecting families and communities.” Local media said Amy Scott, the police officer who shot …

Hundreds gather for candlelight vigil at Bondi Beach to pay tribute to victims of shopping centre attack | Bondi Junction stabbings

Hundreds gather for candlelight vigil at Bondi Beach to pay tribute to victims of shopping centre attack | Bondi Junction stabbings

Published by skeptic

Hundreds of people attended a candlelit vigil at Bondi Beach on Sunday evening to remember the victims of Australia’s worst mass killings in years with speeches, music, and a minute’s silence. Six people were killed and many more injured when Joel Cauchi carried out his murderous rampage on 13 April. At least 12 others – including nine women – were taken to hospital after suffering stab wounds in the attack, and six of them remain in hospital. Police officer Amy Scott shot Cauchi dead at the scene. Five of the six killed were women – Ash Good, 38, Dawn Singleton, 25, Jade Young, 47, Pikria Darchia, 55, and Yixuan Cheng, 27. Faraz Tahir, a 30-year-old refugee who fled persecution in his native Pakistan, was also killed. People attend a candlelight vigil for the victims of a stabbing attack at the Bondi Junction Westfield shopping centre in Sydney. Photograph: Izhar Khan/AFP/Getty Images Prime minister Anthony Albanese and opposition leader Peter Dutton, governor Margaret Beazley and premier Chris Minns were among those who lit candles. The speakers …

Top Astronomers Gather to Confront Possibility They Were Very Wrong About the Universe

Top Astronomers Gather to Confront Possibility They Were Very Wrong About the Universe

Published by skeptic

“More and more people are saying the same thing and these are respected astronomers.” Expiration Date A number of high-profile astronomers are set to convene at London’s Royal Society to question some of the most fundamental aspects of our understanding of the universe. As The Guardian reports, the luminaries of cosmology will be re-examining some basic assumptions about the universe — right down to the over-a-century-old theory that it’s expanding at a constant rate. “We are, in cosmology, using a model that was first formulated in 1922,” coorganizer and Oxford cosmologist Subir Sarkar told the newspaper, in an apparent reference to the year Russian astronomer Alexander Friedmann outlined the possibility of cosmic expansion based on Einstein’s general theory of relativity. “We have great data, but the theoretical basis is past its sell-by date,” he added. “More and more people are saying the same thing and these are respected astronomers.” Reality Check A number of researchers have found evidence that the universe may be expanding more quickly in some areas compared to others, raising the tantalizing possibility …