SEOUL, March 12 (Reuters) - South Korean President Lee Jae Myung has ordered tough disciplinary action against officials responsible for delays in recovering the remains of victims from the 2024 Jeju Air crash that killed 179 people, his office said Thursday.
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(Reporting by Kyu-seok ShimEditing by Ed Davies)
After herdivorcefromKeith Urban, there were speculations thatNicole Kidmanmight move to Australia with her daughters, as it reportedly felt "like a better choice." However, in a recent interview, the actor confirmed she will be living in Nashville, despite her separation from the singer, as it's been her home for more than two decades.
Nicole Kidman and Keith Urban's divorce raised questions about where she and her daughters willsettle down. Sources had earlier revealed toRadarOnlinethat "after her last trip home over the holidays, she's now saying Australia feels like a better choice for the girls and her." Moreover, the actor had been "feeling quite unmoored these days and feels a big pull back home." An insider further claimed that even her daughters are "on board" as they both "love it in Australia as well."
However, Kidman has now set the record straight about her permanent address in an interview withVariety. The "Moulin Rouge" star recently shot for the magazine and answered some of the questions related to her personal and professional life.
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"Do you think you'll remain in Nashville even though your personal situation has changed over the past year?" was one of the many questions that the Hollywood icon answered. She said, "Yes. We have our life here. I'm part of the city and community for 20 years. It's my home," confirming she will stay at the same place despite her divorce.
This is not the only time when the "Babygirl" actor has opened up about her love for the place. She once spoke about the city in an interview withMindfood, saying she lives in "Nashville for a reason." Kidman shared, "I like the peacefulness, I like the solitude. We have a very simple life there so that is probably why I don't feel like I live this grand celebrity life. I step in for a moment and then I step out – back to all the real day-to-day things."
The postNicole Kidman Won't Make This Change Despite Keith Urban Divorceappeared first onReality Tea.
Kylie Jenner's boyfriend,Timothee Chalamet, has been in the news over his opera and ballet comments. During a town hall discussion, the "Marty Supreme" star stated that "no one cares" about the art form. Although he tried to rectify his remarks, it didn't affect the backlash. Recently, an industry insider labeled the actor "tone-deaf" and criticized his "attitude on the press tour." Furthermore, the report claimed that Chalamet's comments might jeopardize his chances at the Oscars.
Kylie Jenner's boyfriend, Timothee Chalamet, was recently slammed online over his opera comments. A couple of weeks ago, he and Matthew McConaughey got together for a candid discussion in a Town Hall event. During the conversation, Chalamet took a dig at opera and ballet, claiming "no one cares" about them.
Since then, people from the arts community and Hollywood have openly criticized the 30-year-old actor. Recently, an industry insider toldPEOPLEin this regard, "A tone-deaf delivery. But what he said isn't inaccurate." They added that Chalamet's controversial remarks were "dumb," and that he has also become "very cocky" during the press tour of "Marty Supreme."
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While Jenner's boyfriend might not have assumed the extreme backlash, the source claimed that the comments might cost him the Oscars. For those unversed, the Hollywood star has been nominated for Best Actor in a Leading Role for "Marty Supreme" at the 98th Academy Awards.
According to the insider, the award ceremony prioritizes "humility" and "not whatever he's doing." Adding to that, the outlet quoted a communications strategist, who labeled opera and ballet as the "Olympics of the performing arts." Furthermore, they advised, "It's also a small industry. Timothée might want to remember the golden rule: if you don't have something nice to say…"
Meanwhile, a Hollywood publicist supported Chalamet and claimed that "a vast majority of Americans already believe" what the actor said. "Those feigning outrage might start proving their support by posting a photo of the last ticket they actually bought to a ballet or opera performance," they stated.
The postKylie Jenner's Boyfriend Labeled 'Tone-Deaf' by Insider Over Opera Commentsappeared first onReality Tea.
(The Center Square) – Downtown Seattle Association President & CEO Jon Scholes said Wednesday night that the Emerald City's downtown area has lost 37,000 jobs in the last five years with city business taxes causing the losses.
"We're going in the wrong direction," he told a crowd assembled for theState of Downtownannual program at the Seattle Convention Center.
At the same time, he said, downtown Bellevue has seen a 12% job increase, including some jobs that have moved from Seattle.
"And over the same period where we've seen a decrease in jobs, we've seen a record increase in taxes that employers in the city of Seattle are paying that employers aren't paying in Bellevue and other cities in our region," he said.
In 2003, the Seattle City Council approved an increase to the city's payroll expense tax to 6.5% for companies whose employees make more than $150,000. That's in addition to a business and occupation tax that Seattle businesses pay on top of the state B&O tax.
And then there's Seattle's Social Housing Tax is indeed being collected for the first time this year. Approved by voters in February 2025, this measure imposes a 5% payroll tax on individual employee compensation exceeding $1 million to fund the city's social housing developer.
Seattle Mayor Katie Wilsonspoke earlier in the program, saying she understand businesses concerns that taxes in Seattle are higher than in nearby communities.
"I very much appreciate that it is not ideal for our tax environment, for businesses to be wildly out of step with neighboring jurisdictions," Wilson said to a loud applause.
Wilson said later in her speech that, "as a progressive and a socialist," she believed it was important for people to have trust in their government.
She also alluded to pending budget cuts for 2027 with the city of Seattle facing a budget deficit of up to $140 million.
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"We can't be afraid to stop funding things that aren't working well," she said without offering details of specific reductions her administration was considering.
Scholes, after the program was over, said he was concerned about the "millionaire's tax" – that is,Senate Bill 6346, proposing a 9.9% tax on annual income over $1 million for individuals or households. SB 6346 has cleared the full Legislature and now heads to Gov. Bob Ferguson's desk for his expected signature.
"I think with all these new taxes that makes us an outlier, there's a concern," Scholes said.
He said businesses have been made out "to be villains" and taxes are being enacted before its even known how the money will be spent.
Scholes said that tech companies that have recently expanded operations in Bellevue, like Snowflake and Anthropic, wouldn't even consider Seattle because of the high business taxes along with crime issues and civil disobedience in the Capitol Hill section of Seattle in 2023.
He said he's concerned that millionaires and billionaires would leave downtown Seattle because of the income tax, taking their companies with them.
Howard Schultz, the man credited with turning Starbucks into a global coffeehouse,announcedon social media Wednesday that he and his wife left Seattle and now call Florida home.
Schultz, with an estimated net worth of $3.5 billion, didn't mention the income tax in his announcement.
He did say, "It is our hope that Washington will remain a place for business and entrepreneurship to thrive, creating essential opportunity for those in Seattle and the surrounding areas."
Schultz joined Amazon founder Jeff Bezos in becoming a Florida resident. Bezos moved from Seattle to Miami in 2023 –the same city that Schultz is moving to –shortly after Washington imposed a 7% capital gains tax on long-term stock or bond sales exceeding $250,000.
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Unrelenting Iranian attacks on shipping traffic and energy infrastructure pushed oil above $100 a barrel on Thursday, as American and Israeli strikes pounded the Islamic Republic with no sign of an end to the war in sight.
Iran hit a container ship off the coast of Dubai, caused a blaze near Bahrain's international airport, targeted a major Saudi oil field with a drone attack and forced Iraq to halt operations at all the country's oil terminals after an attack on its port of Basra on the Persian Gulf.
Iran flouted a United Nations Security Council resolution from the previous day demanding that it halt strikes on its Gulf neighbors with new attacks also reported in Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates.
Sirens wailed before dawn in Jerusalem after Israel said it was working to intercept missiles launched from Iran. The country also announced it had begun a "wide-scale wave of strikes" on Tehran. In Lebanon, where Israel says it is targeting Iran-linked Hezbollah militants, 11 people were killed in two early morning strikes.
Since the United States and Israel sparked with war with a Feb. 28 attack on Iran, Tehran has embarked on a campaign generated at inflicting enough global economic pain to pressure them to relent in their attacks.
In addition to attacking energy infrastructure around the region, Iran has a stranglehold on the Strait of Hormuz, the strategic waterway leading from the Persian Gulf toward the Indian Ocean through which a fifth of the world's oil is transported.
With traffic in the Strait effectively stopped, the price of Brent crude oil, the international standard, rose another 9% on Thursday to more than $100 a barrel, up some 38% over what it cost when the war started.
The U.N. Security Council voted Wednesday to approve a resolution demanding a halt to Iran's "egregious attacks" on its Gulf neighbors, but Tehran showed no signs of changing its strategy.
As the day began Thursday, a container ship in the Persian Gulf was hit with a projectile off the coast of Dubai, sparking a small fire, according to British military's United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations Center. It said the crew of the vessel were safe.
In Bahrain, an early Iranian attack sparked a major fire on Muharraq Island, home to the country's international airport. Authorities urged people to stay indoors and close windows to avoid smoke. The airport has jet fuel tanks, and other tanks in the area serve the kingdom's oil industry.
Kuwait's Defense Ministry said an Iranian drone smashed into a residential building, wounding two people, the UAE said it had activated air defenses twice to protect Dubai from attacks, and firefighters extinguished a blaze at a tower in Dubai Creek Harbor after a drone hit.
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Saudi Arabia said it had shot down a drone targeting the diplomatic quarter of the capital, Riyadh, and also reported downing drones in kingdom's east, including at least one trying to target its Shaybah oil field in the Empty Quarter desert.
Following an attack on Iraq's Basra port that killed at least one person, officials said Thursday that it had been forced to halt operations at all the country's oil terminals.
Farhan al-Fartousi, the director-general of the General Company for Ports of Iraq, said the attack targeted a vessel in a ship-to-ship transfer area of the Persian Gulf port.
Sirens wailed and loud explosions were heard shortly after midnight in Jerusalem and other parts of Israel. The Israeli military said it was responding with another "wide-scale wave of strikes" in Tehran.
Overnight missile launches from Iran and Hezbollah also sent Israelis to shelters in multiple other areas, including Tel Aviv and the northern border with Lebanon.
An Israeli strike hit a car Thursday in Ramlet al-Bayda, a major seaside tourist area of Beirut where dozens of displaced people have been sheltering. Eight people were killed and 31 others were wounded, the Lebanese Health Ministry said. The Israeli military press office told The Associated Press it was "not aware" of a strike at that location.
In Aramoun, a town about 10 kilometers (six miles) south of Beirut, another three people were killed and a child was wounded in another early Israeli attack.
At least 634 people have been killed in Lebanon since the latest fighting began, the Lebanese Health Ministry said Wednesday.
The U.N. refugee agency said at least 759,000 people have beeninternally displaced in Lebanon.
Iranian authorities say more than 1,300 people have been killed there, and Israel has reported 12 people dead. The U.S. has lost seven soldiers while another eight have suffered severe injuries.
Abou AlJoud reported from Beirut and Rising from Bangkok. Associated Press writer Sam Mednick in Tel Aviv, Israel, also contributed to this report, along with AP journalists around the world.
