After reign of terror, ISIS' Baghdadi pleads for relevance

ISIS leader purportedly releases new message 01:41

(CNN)It was a message in a bottle from the land of irrelevance. Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the self-appointed caliph of the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS), this week purportedly put out a voice recording to his dwindling flock of followers, exhorting them to carry on a fight they've already lost.

At the height of ISIS' power in 2014, the group controlled a quasi-state roughly the size of Britain, including Mosul, Iraq's second largest city, and Raqqa, its de facto capital, in Syria. Since then it has lost more than 90% of that territory and today holds sway over pockets of remote terrain straddling the two countries. In the audio message, titled "Give Glad Tidings to the Patient," Baghdadi downplayed the loss of territory and issued the usual calls for the overthrow of hostile Arab regimes. But as much as he might dismiss ISIS' losses, it's hard to imagine it ever recovering.

The US Defense Department and the United Nations estimate that there are still as many as 30,000 ISIS fighters still on the loose in Syria and Iraq, and although the Iraqi government has declared victory over the group, loyalists continue to conduct hit-and-run attacks and probably will do so for the for





eseeable future.

https://edition.cnn.com/2018/08/25/middleeast/baghdadi-isis-message-intl/index.html

Trump's hideous legal landscape just got even worse

(CNN)A week that began with bad news closed with worse news for Trump. According to the New York Times, the Manhattan district attorney's office is currently investigating the Trump Organization. In particular, they are examining the source of the payment to porn star Stormy Daniels, and whether any laws were violated in the payout or reimbursement of Michael Cohen, who paid Daniels the $130,000 in question to buy her silence.

Earlier this week, in a Virginia courtroom, Paul Manafort, Trump's former campaign chairman, was convicted on eight felonies relating to fraud. Shockingly, the President's response to Manfort's conviction was to call him a "brave man" for whom he feels very "sad."

https://edition.cnn.com/2018/08/24/opinions/trumps-hideous-legal-landscape-just-got-worse-opinion-jackson/index.html

Jean-Pierre Bemba 'cannot run for DRC president' Get more news on bbc news world

Former warlord Jean-Pierre Bemba cannot run to be the next president of the Democratic Republic of Congo, the country's electoral commission said.

Mr Bemba was one of six would-be candidates deemed ineligible following hours of deliberation.

The ex-rebel leader had a war crimes conviction overturned in June.

However, the commission said Mr Bemba was excluded because of his conviction by the International Criminal Court (ICC) for bribing witnesses.

Mr Bemba, who returned to the DR Congo at the start of August after 11 years spent in exile or prison, is currently appealing against the ICC conviction.

• Who is Jean-Pierre Bemba?
• Joseph Kabila, DR Congo and conflict explained

York Space Systems aims to slash cost of sending satellites into space from $10 million to just $3 million

The mission of York Space Systems is to improve affordability and reliability for space innovation in order to transform and enable next-generation space mission operations worldwide.

According to the organization's website, it is currently "one of the most innovative aerospace companies, specializing in the manufacture of spacecraft platforms, end-to-end customer space collection solutions, cloud-based spacecraft development tools, and real-time web-based mission tasking."

York Space Systems has plans to launch several satellites over the next year using a type of so-called "space bus" called the "S-Satellite," which costs significantly less to launch than traditional satellites. 

The company's goal is to ultimately reduce the cost of launching a satellite by more than 50 percent — from $10 million down to just $3 or $4 million per launch.

For more on York Space Systems, check out the above episode of Space Pirates.https://www.aol.com/article/news/2018/08/22/york-space-systems-aims-to-slash-cost-of-launching-satellites/23506596/

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Pope Francis faces 'impossible' task to address child abuse during Ireland visit

The head of the Catholic Church in Ireland insists the issue of child abuse should not disappear because of Pope Francis' visit.

Addressing the legacy of child abuse by priests will be mission impossible for Pope Francis alone, according to the head of the Catholic Church in Ireland

Archbishop Eamon Martin, the Primate of All Ireland, told Sky News the issue would not disappear because of Francis' visit to Ireland this weekend "and nor should it".
He added: "If you speak to survivors, they're carrying a trauma and they will carry it with them for the rest of their lives.
https://news.sky.com/story/pope-francis-faces-impossible-mission-attempting-to-address-child-abuse-in-ireland-11480603"We have no right to think that we can leave it behind us."

Elo has been found

Glory baby Elo has been found after several years.https://m.facebook.com/adaehimoses/photos/a.988201347877901/1998916500139709/?type=3&source=48