Instagram “can help” troubled youth, and “works for the good” of teenagers. This is what his boss Adam Mosseri said last December during his hearing before the American Congress. These declarations followed the revelations of the Wall Street Journal which had published internal studies of Facebook demonstrating the harmful consequences of its subsidiary Instagram on the image and the mental health of its youngest users.
Daily Archives
January 21, 2022
Central African Republic: a UN investigation into a massacre attributed to Central African and Russian paramilitary forces (UN sources)
written by Alexandra Hartman Editor-in-Chief
Published on :
The UN is investigating an alleged massacre near Bria, in the Central African Republic, which claimed several dozen victims during a joint operation by the Central African armed forces and mercenaries from the Russian group Wagner from January 16 to 17, it was reported. learned Friday from UN sources. This operation targeted the armed group Union for Peace in the Central African Republic (UPC), one of these sources told AFP on condition of anonymity. “More than 30 civilians were reportedly killed, some by stray bullets,” she added, also referring to the possibility of looting by the perpetrators of the military operation.
A year after a record, a rare painting by Botticelli soon to be auctioned in New York
written by Alexandra Hartman Editor-in-Chief
Published on :
New York (AFP) – A rare Botticelli painting, depicting a portrait of Christ, will go up for auction on January 27 at Sotheby’s in New York, a year following a record $92 million for a painting by the Italian Renaissance master.
If the majority of works by Sandro Botticelli, such as the famous “Springtime” or “Birth of Venus”, are exhibited at the Uffizi in Florence, the pieces circulating in private collections are much rarer.
“We estimate there are only regarding five that we know of,” Christopher Apostle, head of the old masters department at Sotheby’s, told AFP.
“Christ as a Man of Sorrows” (“The man of sorrows”), on public display from Saturday at Sotheby’s in New York, is a portrait on a black background of Jesus, with deep gaze, crown thorns around the head. This is surrounded by angels and the hands of Christ are bound by ropes and already scarified.
“It was probably painted (by Botticelli) in his late fifties (of years)”, around the 1500s, and “as one gets older, one is more introspective, more metaphysical, spiritual. This is what we see deeply in this painting”, adds Christopher Apostle.
The painting, very well preserved, remained since the middle of the 19th century in the same family of collectors who shared their life between England and Italy, before being sold to its current owners in 1963, at auction, for 10,000 pounds sterling at the time, we explain at Sotheby’s.
“For the time, it’s a significant price,” said Mr. Apostle, while the auction house set its estimate at more than 40 million dollars.
In January 2021, a painting by Botticelli, the “Young Man Holding a Medallion,” was auctioned for $ 92.2 million in New York, still at Sotheby’s. It was an auction record for the Italian painter, whose frescoes adorn the Sistine Chapel at the Vatican.
© 2022 AFP
Phoenix rules the “Western Region” – Al-Ittihad newspaper
written by Alexandra Hartman Editor-in-Chief
Los Angeles (AFP)
The Phoenix Suns defeated the Dallas Mavericks 109-101 in the NBA, to control their grip on the top of the Western Region, benefiting from the loss of the Golden State Warriors runner-up once morest the guest Indiana Pacers 117-121 following an extension.
At the “American Airlines Center” stadium, and while the result was a 99-99 draw, three minutes before the final whistle, the Suns scored 10 points once morest two points for his opponent.
The Suns owes the victory to the duo Devin Booker and Chris Paul, as the first scored two free throws in the last seconds out of a total of 28 points, in addition to two assists out of 6, while the second scored the last three-pointer to the Mavericks hopes of returning to the match, ending the match with 20 points. And 11 assists.
“I think our experience backed up by playing the knockout rounds last year (the Suns reached the League Final) helped us move forward in terms of our synergy,” Booker said.
“So we never collapse in these situations, we hang our hats in defence, we try to make it difficult for other teams and usually it works out.”
The Suns, who consolidated their lead in Al Gharbia with their 35 victory once morest 9 defeats, achieved their fifth victory in a row, while the Mavericks finished a series of four victories in a row, and suffered only their second loss in their last 12 matches, and the 20 this season compared to 26 wins, and the Mavericks maintained fifth place in the region Western.
He stood out among the losing Slovenian Luka Doncic, scoring 28 points, including 19 at the break, to 8 assists and 8 rebounds, following his 41 points in the Toronto Raptors basket on Wednesday.
Dallas hopes not to lose the efforts of his star Doncic, following he suffered from pain in his neck as a result of his strong fall in the late third quarter, while the Slovenian confirmed, “It is the spine, when I fell, it hit my back. It hurts so much now.”
At the Chase Center stadium, the thirteenth-placed Indiana Pacers in the eastern region, a day following their victory over the Los Angeles Lakers, inflicted an unexpected loss on their guest, the Golden State Warriors, following the extension.
Despite Stephen Curry’s advancing in the losing ranks by scoring 39 points to 8 assists, he failed in the last test, specifically in his last two throws from outside the arc (6 successful throws out of 16), and his team lost the ball 21 times, and only succeeded in 9 triple shots out of 42.
The Golden State Warriors, who led by 16 points at the break, opened the door for their guest to turn the tables on him led by Dominican star Chris Duarte, who has 27 points, the highest in his career, and the decisive Kiefer Sykes with 5 of his 10 points following the extension, while Justin Holiday added 16.
“We stayed together,” Duarte said following the victory, “We played defensively in a tough style, and that was the key (to win), to stop the attacks and then move the ball, I think we did a great job on the field.”
At the loser, the absence of “warrior” Draymond Green, due to a leg injury, eased his weight once once more, while Clay Thompson struggled to impose himself with 12 points, while Kevin Looney added 13.
In New York and Madison Square Garden, the Knicks lost their third loss in a row following falling to the New Orleans Pelicans 91-102, knowing that the latter advanced by 25 points in some periods of the match.
The Knicks paid dearly for their lack of attacking efficacy, as they missed the trio of Julius Randle (4 points, 7 rebounds and 6 decisive balls), French Yvan Fournier (6 points) and Kimba Walker, who only had five points.
In contrast to the loser, New Orleans, ranked thirteenth in the Western Region, shone thanks to its team play with 6 players between 11 and 18 points, the best of whom is Lithuanian center player Jonas Valanciunas with 18 points to 10 rebounds.