Hard cell: Melbourne prison bar where patrons and staff dress as inmates described as ‘grotesque’

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Alcotraz, where patrons pay to drink cocktails in a bar designed like a prison, draws criticism

It’s advertised as an “immersive cocktail experience like no other” in which bar staff cosplay as prison inmates, actors play crooked guards, and the patrons don orange jumpsuits to drink in mock prison cells.

But the bar, which is scheduled to open in Melbourne in June, has been condemned by a charity as a “disturbingly” insensitive concept that capitalises on suffering.

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Taiwan passes controversial reform bill after violence and protests

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Reforms will expand parliamentarians’ powers to question officials and citizens

Taiwan’s opposition-controlled parliament has passed a controversial reform bill after days of hostile debate and physical fights between MPs inside, and mass protests by citizens outside.

The bills passed 58 votes to 45, Bloomberg reported, after a third reading on Tuesday evening in Taipei during which there were further scuffles and members of the ruling party throwing paper planes and hurling garbage bags at the opposition.

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Comedian drops plan for a billboard of Gina Rinehart portrait in Times Square

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Dan Ilic wanted to project Vincent Namitjira’s work after Australia’s richest woman tried to have it removed from the National Gallery

An Australian comedian has dropped his plan to broadcast Vincent Namatjira’s contentious portrait of Gina Rinehart to thousands of tourists and New Yorkers in Times Square.

Dan Ilic told Guardian Australia on Tuesday lunchtime that, after exceeding his crowdfunding target of A$30,000, his stunt would go live in Times Square at 8pm on Friday night.

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Image: Planned 7-layer defensive border between NATO and Russia – Business Insider

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  1. Image: Planned 7-layer defensive border between NATO and Russia  Business Insider
  2. Poland’s new East Shield plan mixes modern ISR with old-school physical barriers  Breaking Defense
  3. Poland unveils new Iron Curtain to protect Europe  The Telegraph
  4. Poland fleshes out details of plan to beef up eastern border  Voice of America - VOA News
  5. Poland unveils details of €2.4bn fortification of eastern borders  Notes From Poland
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Taiwan’s parliament passes bill pushing pro-China changes – Al Jazeera English

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  1. Taiwan’s parliament passes bill pushing pro-China changes  Al Jazeera English
  2. Taiwan's legislature passes changes seen as favoring China, reducing president's power  The Associated Press
  3. Why Lawmakers Are Brawling and People Are Protesting in Taiwan  The New York Times
  4. Taiwan passes controversial reform bill after violence and protests  The Guardian
  5. Taiwan's legislature passes controversial 'pro-China' measures, reducing president's power  Fox News
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Ship struck, taking on water in Red Sea after presumed Houthi attack – The Times of Israel

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  1. Ship struck, taking on water in Red Sea after presumed Houthi attack  The Times of Israel
  2. Greek-Owned Ship Takes on Water After Being Struck in Red Sea  Bloomberg
  3. A missile attack damages a ship in the Red Sea off Yemen's coast near previous Houthi rebel assaults  The Associated Press
  4. UKMTO receives report of incident 33 nautical miles northwest of Yemen's Mocha  Reuters
  5. Houthis attack 3 ships, 2 US destroyers in Red Sea, Indian Ocean  The Jerusalem Post
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‘Shut down the world’: McCaul warns of global economic catastrophe if China invades Taiwan – Fox News

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  1. 'Shut down the world': McCaul warns of global economic catastrophe if China invades Taiwan  Fox News
  2. U.S. lawmakers ignore China's warning, meet with Taiwan's new leader  The Washington Post
  3. U.S. Lawmakers Meet With New Taiwan President Amid Tensions With China  The Wall Street Journal
  4. Opinion | Beijing's nearest security threat isn't in Taipei – it's in Pyongyang  South China Morning Post
  5. US lawmakers vow to bolster Taiwan’s defense with bipartisan visit days after China’s ‘punishment’ military drills  CNN
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More than 100 business leaders including Wikipedia’s Jimmy Wales sign open letter backing Britain’s center-left opposition – CNBC

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  1. More than 100 business leaders including Wikipedia's Jimmy Wales sign open letter backing Britain's center-left opposition  CNBC
  2. Labour's business letter ridiculed after executives refused to sign  The Telegraph
  3. UK Political Campaigns Try to Reassure: The Readout  Bloomberg
  4. Labour secures backing of 120 business executives  Financial Times
  5. More than 120 business leaders back Labour 'to achieve UK's full economic potential'  Sky News
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Spying, hacking and intimidation: Israel’s nine-year ‘war’ on the ICC exposed

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Exclusive: Investigation reveals how intelligence agencies tried to derail war crimes prosecution, with Netanyahu ‘obsessed’ with intercepts

When the chief prosecutor of the international criminal court (ICC) announced he was seeking arrest warrants against Israeli and Hamas leaders, he issued a cryptic warning: “I insist that all attempts to impede, intimidate or improperly influence the officials of this court must cease immediately.”

Karim Khan did not provide specific details of attempts to interfere in the ICC’s work, but he noted a clause in the court’s foundational treaty that made any such interference a criminal offence. If the conduct continued, he added, “my office will not hesitate to act”.

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