Moroccan authorities arrested 12 suspects and were hunting three others after a 17-year-old girl told police she was gang-raped, tortured, and held against her will for two months.
Anger erupted in Morocco after news reports last week that the teenager was abducted, brutalised, and forcibly tattooed. The case sparked a new public outcry over women’s rights and sexual abuse in the North African kingdom.
Ibrahim Hashane, a member of a group of volunteer lawyers who are pressing her case, said on Wednesday an examining judge ordered investigations into allegations of kidnapping, rape and abuse.
Hashane told The Associated Press among the 15 people suspected in the case, 12 are in custody and three are on the run. He added the judge scheduled a first hearing next week.
Police confirmed there were arrests but wouldn’t say how many or give details. A court official on Tuesday said the suspects were aged between 18 and 27.
The main suspect, 20, was being held on suspicion of rape, torture, kidnapping, making death threats, and forming a gang, the official said.
‘Still in shock’
In an online video interview with Morocco’s Chouf TV last week, the girl alleged her kidnappers “would assault me one by one”, burned her, and didn’t feed her or let her shower. She appeared to have scars from cigarette burns on her hands.
The girl said she was held captive in the town of Olad Ayad, in the central Moroccan province of Beni Mellal.
“They held me for about two months and raped and tortured me. I will never forgive them. They have destroyed me,” she said.
The girl “is still in shock even if she tries to be strong”, said Loubna El Joud of women’s rights group NSAT, which is providing her with medical and psychological support. “Her hands shake when she speaks.”
She alleged two men kidnapped her at knife-point when she was visiting her aunt during the May-June holy month of Ramadan, before selling her to other men in exchange for money or drugs. She said her captors gave her drugs that knocked her out for days at a time.
More than 29,000 people signed a petition demanding the government provide the girl with urgent medical and psychological care after the video of her testimony went viral.
‘Depraved’ lifestyle
Rape victims in Morocco are often subject to double trauma as the conservative society blames them for their ordeal.
Relatives of the suspects were quoted in the Moroccan press accussing the teenager of lying, saying she lived a “depraved” lifestyle.
Abdelwahed Saadi, a social worker and neighbour of the girl’s family, said her father reported her missing but authorities did not launch an investigation.
“They are simple people. The father is sick and couldn’t do much to help free his daughter. Where we live is a crime and drug hotspot… She is first and foremost a victim of a dysfunctional environment. So are the attackers.”
The teenager said she attempted to flee from her abusers several times but in vain. Eventually, she said her father managed to speak by phone to one of the alleged kidnappers and convinced him to free her by saying he wouldn’t file a police complaint. Once freed, however, the girl notified authorities herself.
‘Taken seriously’
Houcine Harshi, president of the Moroccan Association for the Defense of Human Rights, cautioned the girl’s account must be viewed with some scepticism.
But Saadi said no circumstances could excuse the girl’s rape. “This girl is a minor. She says she has been abused and raped. Her words must be taken seriously,” he said.
Violence against Moroccan women remains widespread and a largely taboo subject in the country.
In February, parliament passed a long-sought law on combating violence against women, recognising some forms of abuse for the first time, and criminalising some forms of domestic violence.
As charming and fun as taking instant photos with an analog camera is, the world is digital now, and if you can’t post your shots to Instagram, they might as well not exist.
That’s why Polaroid Originals (formerly Impossible) has returned with the OneStep+, a new instant camera that mashes last year’s OneStep 2 with Bluetooth and app connectivity.
At $159.99, the new OneStep+ is a little pricier than the $99.99 OneStep 2, but it does come with a bunch of new improvements that are well worth the extra charge.
Physically, the OneStep+ is largely the same as the OneStep 2. It’s still an all-plastic instant camera that feels a bit like a toy, but that can be said for almost any instant camera these days. And it still uses Type-600 instant film. Battery should last up to 60 days on a single charge.
The lens has been improved a bit and can focus about half the distance as the old one (about a foot versus two feet on the OneStep 2), which, of course, means even better selfies.
The OneStep+ only comes in black and has the classic Polaroid rainbow stripe running down the front.
Image: raymond wong/mashable
To use the new OneStep+’s new features, however, requires connecting it your phone via Bluetooth and firing up the Polaroid Originals app (available on iOS and Android).
Still an all-plastic instant camera.
Image: RAYMOND WONG/MASHABLE
With the app, the OneStep+ is able to take portrait-style photos — the same kind on smartphones that blur keep the subject in focus, but blur out the background.
The app also lets you create double exposure shots by superimposing one photo over another to create an eerie or ghost-like effect, as well as create light paintings.
Check out some of these wild new kinds of photos, like double exposure and light painting, you can shoot using the app.
Image: RAYMOND WONG/MASHABLE
Additionally, there’s a “Remote Trigger” feature that lets you activate the camera shutter using the app (good for group photos) from as far as 32 feet away, a new 12-second self-timer mode, and a “Noise Trigger” that lets the camera take a photo when you clap, or when you splash in the pool, or if a dog barks.
Touch manual only if you know what you’re doing.
Image: RAYMOND WONG/MASHABLE
Advanced photographers will appreciate the full manual mode that gives you controls to adjust camera settings such as the aperture and shutter speed.
The feature I think will be the most popular is the scanner. Using AI, you can take a photo of any Polaroid photo and the app will automatically crop, srom ittraighten, and even remove reflections, from it so that it’s good to go for sharing online.
There’s more to the app than simply new shooting modes and features for the OneStep+, though. Polaroid Originals wants it be a community where photographers can come and share their instant photos much like in a real gallery space.
As such, the app will have curated editorial content to showcase some of the best photos shared within the app. There will also be video content and tutorials with tips and tricks on how to get the most out of their cameras. Yes, it’s another online profile you’ll have to create, but if you’re deeply obsessed with instant photography, there’s probably no better place to show off.
The app’s also a community to showcase your best instant photos.
Image: RAYMOND WONG/MASHABLE
As we said earlier: Yeah, the OneStep+ costs $60 more than the OneStep 2, but a lot of its new features are well worth the money. If you think they’re not, the OneStep 2’s still a excellent instant camera.
EW is exclusively debuting a new teaser for the intense second season of the Fox hit about first responders starring Angela Bassett, Peter Krause and series newcomer Jennifer Love Hewitt.
An earthquake will hit Los Angeles in the second episode and, the production is so huge, it will also extend into episode three.
The series, created by Ryan Murphy, Brad Falchuk and Tim Minear, has a two night premiere on Sept. 23 and 24th. Then, the earthquake storyline will conclude on Oct. 1.
SportsPulse: USA TODAY Sports’ Bob Nightengale sat down for an interview with Astros pitcher Roberto Osuna, who recently served a 75-game suspension for violating the league’s domestic violence policy. USA TODAY
HOUSTON — Roberto Osuna faces his locker, nervously glances over his shoulder, his eyes darting around the room. He’s still uncertain who to trust.
The Astros closer hasn’t spoken publicly about that May 7 evening in Toronto until now, and is reluctant to divulge details, not with a hearing scheduled Sept. 5 on a charge he assaulted his girlfriend.
“No one knows what happened but obviously me,’’ Osuna told USA TODAY Sports in a 20-minute interview. “Everybody is quick to judge me and say all kinds of things about it. I’m just waiting for everything to come out so people can really wait to see what happened. I would really like the fans, and everybody else, (to) learn what the media says is not true.
“The biggest thing for me, and it’s sad to me, (is) how people are free to say whatever they want. They can just judge you, and they don’t know you. Everybody is judging me for things they don’t know. I don’t like that.
“Hey, if I’m guilty, you can say whatever you want.’’
As Osuna remains silent on what happened, the public waits.
Toronto defense attorney Daniel Brown told USA TODAY Sports that, unlike many jurisdictions in the U.S., police reports are not public record and the court files only include the basics of the case, like the charges against the individual.
“It’s not common practice to release that information until it’s been presented in court,” Brown said.
Osuna’s lawyer, Domenic Basile, told reporters earlier this month that he was pushing for a peace bond, an order that typically spans a year and would lead to the dismissal of charges if the terms are followed. A peace bond can include conditions like a no-contact order between Osuna and the alleged victim.
Osuna, who was suspended 75 games by Major League Baseball for violating its domestic violence policy, is confident justice will be served, but also understands if he’s convicted, he could face six months in prison and a $5,000 fine.
Yet in the court of public opinion, he knows he already has been declared guilty. He hasn’t heard any boos in Houston, but says he has been subjected to aggressive insults from fans in Seattle and Oakland, prompting extra security measures.
Most teams made up their mind on Osuna when they passed on acquiring him from the Toronto Blue Jays at the non-waiver trade deadline. The Astros publicly were lambasted when they announced the July 30 deal, particularly considering the team had a zero-tolerance policy on domestic abuse. They waived it for Osuna since he was not a member of the organization when he was arrested.
“The egregious acts are the egregious acts,’’ Astros manager A.J. Hinch said. “That’s never going to be debatable among people, and I get it. I have a wife and two daughters. It’s very hard personally to even think about that. But the fact is that the case is still pending, is what most people are offended about.
“Even though you’re suspended by baseball, which everybody thinks is an admittance of guilt — you forfeit the money ($2.5 million) and the time — but then it’s still not over and he’s pitching for a contender. I can see the confusing messages around baseball.’’
Teammates take wait-and-see approach
Several Astros players, such as veteran starter Justin Verlander and pitcher Lance McCullers Jr., were apprehensive after the trade. There was a meeting when Osuna joined the team after his suspension, with players seeking answers from Osuna.
Verlander and McCullers, who voiced their disgust for domestic abusers after a video leaked this spring of former Astros prospect Danry Vasquez hitting his wife, now say they are reserving judgment on Osuna until the case is settled.
“I still kind of have the same view,’’ Verlander told USA TODAY Sports. “I don’t know what happened. He can’t tell me what happened. I don’t know what I can and can’t say. He just basically told me to wait and see what comes out.
“I don’t know how to feel about it.’’
Said McCullers: “I don’t want to comment on that. I want to wait until everything plays out.’’
So Verlander and McCullers will wait, along with everyone else.
“Everybody kind of got on me what I said about the other guy,’’ said Verlander, who blasted Vasquez in an Instagram message: “(Middle finger emoji) you man. I hope the rest of your life without baseball is horrible. You deserve all that is coming your way.’’
“But that was different,’’ Verlander said. “I saw video of that guy. I saw the evidence. I haven’t seen anything with [Osuna]. I don’t know. I wouldn’t pass judgment on somebody if I didn’t know what happened.
“So I don’t pretend to assume anything. It’s a sensitive subject. They knew what they were biting off. It’s an interesting dynamic in here.’’
When told that Osuna is eager for the truth to emerge, Verlander said: “I would be too, if he’s exonerated.’’
Other players questioned by USA TODAY Sports say they have embraced Osuna as a teammate now that they’ve gotten to speak with him and know him.
“All I’ve got to say is let all of this sort out and see if people are talking, and how they’re talking in public,’’ All-Star Game MVP Alex Bregman said. “I think once the truth comes out, a lot of people are going to eat their words. … He’s been an unbelievable teammate, and a great guy.’’
Veteran starter Dallas Keuchel says perhaps he judged Osuna too quickly.
“You’ve got to really step back and remove yourself from the situation,’’ Keuchel said, “until everything comes out and the case is closed. I had to tell myself that as well. It’s not easy hearing about it, but you’ve got to be careful not to make a judgment until something comes out.”
Said veteran pitcher Charlie Morton: “This group, in particular, cares a lot about the character in this clubhouse. People that are in this clubhouse are counting on people being good people. So far, he hasn’t demonstrated to the contrary. He’s been great.’’
Handling the scrutiny
The defending World Series champions, who tried to acquire Osuna a year ago, certainly have been delighted by his performance. He has solidified their bullpen, becoming their full-time closer.
They’re also cognizant that since his case is pending, it’s insensitive to celebrate his success. When Osuna enters games, unlike most closers, there is no booming walk-up music, light shows or dramatic scoreboard sounds.
The Astros, who said they have received critical letters and e-mails from season ticket-holders, vow to use this opportunity to raise awareness for the Houston Area Women’s Center.
“People were concerned when we made the trade, it’s a difficult subject and rightfully so,’’ Astros owner Jim Crane told USA TODAY Sports. “It should be. We did as much homework on this as we could, and we felt the guy deserved a second chance. He had done all of his community work, counseling, and done everything baseball asked him to do.
“We are now going to do some stuff around the ballpark that will hopefully benefit women’s centers that address this problem. It’s a sensitive problem, and we want to be proactive.’’
Osuna, 23, a native of Sinaloa, Mexico, wonders if people would give him the benefit of the doubt if he were an American citizen. Maybe if his suspension had been 30 games (like New York Yankees closer Aroldis Chapman served in 2016), or 15 games (like Boston Red Sox starter Steven Wright served earlier this season), he’d be viewed differently.
“Believe me, different times, different situations, that’s it,’’ said Osuna, who is considering buying a house and living in Houston full-time. “It doesn’t mean I did something bigger than them, or they did something bigger than me. I don’t know how it worked, I just wanted to get back playing baseball. That’s all.’’
All he can do is wait, and endure the insults he takes on the road, whether from fans screaming obscenities at him in Seattle while he sat in the bullpen, or from one in Oakland who shouted slurs about his mother.
“You can say anything you want to me,’’ Osuna said. “None of what you say will hurt me because I know what happened. But don’t talk about my mom. I might lose my mind one day if you try to say something to my mom. She has nothing to do with this.
“There are people who changed towards me, but so many people had my back and were supportive. I heard from guys like [former teammates] Jason Grilli, Jose Bautista and Edwin Encarnacion. That meant everything to me.
“And here … the first time I met these guys, they gave me the thumbs up. They said, ‘Hey, you’re one of us. Happy to have you.’ They’ve really made me comfortable, and really made things normal.
“Hopefully, when this is all over, it can stay that way.’’
Much like New York purged the porn from Times Square in the 1990s, HBO has banished its adult content from its website and apps.
That’s not to say nudity is no more on the cable network: Original series such as “Game of Thrones” and “The Deuce” will continue to pour on the steam.
But adult movies and shows like “Taxicab Confessions,” “Real Sex,” “Cathouse” – pretty much all the soft-core content that has been part of HBO’s late-night Friday slate for decades, is history, as first reported in the Los Angeles Times and The Hollywood Reporter on Tuesday.
In a statement to both outlets, a spokesperson confirmed that the channel was indeed consciously changing its programming.
“Over the past several years HBO has been winding down its late-night adult fare,” the statement read. “While we’re greatly ramping up our other original program offerings, there hasn’t been a strong demand for this kind of adult programming, perhaps because it’s easily available elsewhere.”
USA TODAY has reached out to HBO for comment.
Some on Twitter reacted to reports with jest.
“The radio: And HBO has announced it’s getting rid of all adult-themed programming and soft-core porn,” one user wrote. “My fellow lyft rider: Well there goes Thrones LOL”
The radio: And HBO has announced it’s getting rid of all adult-themed programming and soft-core porn My fellow lyft rider: Well there goes Thrones LOL
“I would bet a million dollars no one was watching the ‘adult content’ on HBO because so many people borrow their parents’ passwords and didn’t want Real Sex 6,000 showing up on their Continue Watching queue,” posted another.
I would bet a million dollars no one was watching the “adult content” on HBO because so many people borrow their parents’ passwords and didn’t want Real Sex 6,000 showing up on their Continue Watching queue
“End of an era. And it’s too bad,” a user shared. “Yes, some of these shows and movies were just vehicles for naked people, and meant for masturbating viewers before the arrival of free unlimited porn. But Real Sex was probably the most sex positive show in history.”
End of an era.
And it’s too bad.
Yes, some of these shows and movies were just vehicles for naked people, and meant for masturbating viewers before the arrival of free unlimited porn.
As part of its next era, HBO has curated a Friday night offering that includes late-night shows and unique comedies: “Animals” (11:30 EDT/PDT), which depicts creatures living in New York City, and “Random Acts of Flyness” (midnight EDT/PDT). Recently renewed for a second season, the latter explores themes like blackness, sexuality and police violence.
As Syrian forces mobilise for a final assault to retake the last rebel-held province of Idlib, an international tug of war between Turkey, Iran, Russia and the United States is taking shape that will decide the fate of two million residents.
Retaking Idlib will enable the Syrian government to finally regain control over most of the country for the first since the outbreak of the bloody civil war in 2011.
While Syrian forces backed by Russian air and naval firepower prepare for an attack on opposition fighters – including the once al-Qaeda-affiliated Hay’et Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) group – Moscow and Ankara are trying to negotiate a solution to spare the province from a devastating assault and avoid an influx of millions of Syrian refugees into Turkey.
Analysts, however, say the Idlib offensive is inevitable because negotiations between the various parties in Syria have consistently failed to end the civil war so far.
“I doubt if Turkey or others would be able to avoid an attack on Idlib or its takeover by the regime,” said Joshua Landis, director of the Center for Middle East Studies at Oklahoma University.
Unless the US does something drastic, such as establishing a no-fly zone over the province, Syrian forces supported by Russia’s airpower will undoubtedly retake it, Landis told Al Jazeera.
Rebels’ fate?
Turkey maintains several military bases in the province. Recent Arabic press reports said Turkey has demanded that HTS – formerly known as al-Nusra Front – and other armed groups dissolve and leave Idlib.
Abu Mohammed al-Joulani, leader of Hay’et Tahrir al-Sham, has reportedly declared he will not heed Turkish demands and ordered his fighters to “follow God, not Turkey” and prepare for battle.
But a prominent Jordanian Salafist with knowledge of the armed groups fighting in Syria cast doubt on al-Joulani’s latest call for his cadres to fight to the death.
HTS’ leader was being dishonest because “he truly wanted to go along with Turkey but wanted a bigger price for his compliance with its demands”, he told Al Jazeera, declining to be identified because he is banned from speaking to the media by Jordanian intelligence.
“When he did not get what he wanted from Turkey, he made his statement calling for war,” he said.
Based on his information and familiarity with HTS’ religious leadership, the Jordanian said HTS will dissolve and disperse while declaring the move was in “the best interest of religion and the people of Idlib”.
‘End of the line’
Landis agreed that time was up for the armed group as Hay’et Tahrir al-Sham‘s options have become exhausted, especially with Turkey.
The Turkish government will not allow HTS members to resettle in Turkey for fear of being accused of harbouring “terrorists”, thereby complicating ties with Western intelligence agencies.
“HTS has reached the end of the line,” said Landis, also the author of the Syria Comment blog.
The only option the group’s fighters might have is relocation to northern Syria near Aleppo, where other rebels still have control. But even that option is complicated and could ignite fighting among the opposition factions.
Iranian spoils?
The other player on the chessboard is Iran, which has provided steady political, financial, and military backing to Syria’s President Bashar al-Assad since the war began seven and a half years ago.
An estimated 1,000 Iranians – including senior members of the elite Revolutionary Guards – have been killed in Syria since 2012.
On Sunday, Iranian Defence Minister Amir Hatami met al-Assad and his Syrian counterpart Ali Abdullah Ayyoub.
“Not only the people of the region but the people of the world are indebted to the battles that have taken place against terrorists in Syria,” Hatami told Assad in a meeting, according to Iran’s Tasnim news agency.
He added Syria is “passing through the critical stage” and expressed hope at Iran’s involvement in the country’s reconstruction.
Iran’s military attache to Damascus, Brigadier-General Abolghasem Alinejad, said military advisers will remain in Syria under a defence agreement signed on Monday.
You should be happy when you meet a hoofed friend. Especially if that friend is a goat.
Because, it turns out, goats can read human moods and are more drawn to people who look happy.
According to a new study recently published in the journal Open Science, goats prefer “positive human emotional facial expressions.” That’s smiling faces, to you and me.
Researchers set goats free to explore a closed-off test area with two black and white photos of a human face – one smiling and one angry – posted at goat eye level.
The researchers found that that the goats preferred to approach the photo of the smiling face.
The results suggest that goats — who have traditionally been domesticated for the purpose of food production and not companionship — have the ability to read human facial expressions.
Mashable reached out to one of the researchers behind the study, Carine Savalli Redigolo of the Federal University of São Paulo, who has PhDs in Statistics and Ethology.
According to Savalli Redigolo, the findings “should raise discussions about how we manage and treat these animals.”
“These findings challenge the idea that such complex ability is limited to companion or working animals,” says Savalli Redigolo.
Savalli Redigolo explains that while companion animals are still more skilled at reading humans, the study proves that goats are able to tell if humans look happy or not — and that “they prefer happy faces.”
“Dogs are very skilful at perceiving human communicative cues, and they can also integrate visual and acoustic emotional information,” says Savalli Redigolo “Horses also seem to perceive and differentiate emotional valences from human faces.”
The results were most significant when the photo of the smiling person was placed on the right side of the test space. But according to Savalli Redigolo, the researchers believe this to is due to the asymmetry of the goat brain.
“For dogs, for example, the left-hemisphere of the brain process more positive emotions which can induce to a right gaze bias. This could have happened also with these goats,” she said.
Get out there and smile at a goat if you get the chance!
Milo Ventimiglia, Mandy Moore, Justin Hartley, Sterling K. Brown
Producer
Dan Fogelman
broadcaster
NBC
seasons
3
Genre
Drama
To celebrate Fall TV and our huge Fall TV Preview issue that’s out in September, EW is bringing you 50 scoops in 50 days, a daily dish on some of your favorite shows. Follow the hashtag #50Scoops50Days on Twitter and Instagram to keep up with the latest, and check EW.com/50-Scoops for all the news and surprises.
In less than a month, This Is Us finally will return to your living rooms/bedrooms/phones with the unveiling of the season 3 premiere. That episode — which will be the NBC family dramedy’s first in six months — will start to put viewers on the path to enlightenment in regard to those questions that were introduced in the season 2 finale’s trio of flash-forwards. The welcome-back installment also will whisk you back to the ’70s to witness the first date of Jack (Milo Ventimiglia) and Rebecca (Mandy Moore). It seemed like the two were destined for something big after a magical connection in the bar where almost-bandit Jack spotted Rebecca singing “Moonshadow,” and now you will learn exactly what happened later that night on their first official date.
As you can see in this first-look image from the episode, Jack and Rebecca will head to a carnival-type setting, and Rebecca will enjoy at least two-fifths of a candy apple. But is their first date as sweet as you might imagine? “People expect it to be a straight line to finding one another and living happily ever after — and that may not be the case,” Moore hints to EW.
In any case, witnessing their first date after having seen Jack’s tragic death last season might give you a new poignant perspective. “It’s extremely good television to watch these two have their origin story,” series creator Dan Fogelman tells EW. “It’s always interesting after you lose somebody — which we kind of feel like we did with Jack this past season — to almost go in and put in those old video tapes and watch them at much earlier stage of life. And I think that’s what this feels like.”
When it comes to Jack, what themes emerge in the new season? “Discovery of the past,” Ventimiglia tells EW. “New, burgeoning love.”
NEXT PAGE: What’s going with Randall and Beth in this photo?
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