As former President Donald Trump prepares for a momentous court appearance Tuesday on charges related to the hoarding of top-secret documents, Republican allies are amplifying, without evidence, claims that he is the target of a political prosecution. To press their case, Trump's backers are citing the Justice Department's decision in 2016 not to bring charges against former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, his Democratic opponent in that year's presidential race, over her handling of classified information. His supporters also are invoking a separate classified documents investigation concerning President Joe Biden to allege a two-tier system of justice that is punishing Trump, the undisputed early front-runner for the GOP's 2024 White House nomination, for conduct that Democrats have engaged in. "Is there a different standard for a Democratic secretary of state versus a former Republican president?” said Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, a Trump primary rival. “I think there needs to be one standard of justice in this country.” But those arguments overlook abundant factual and legal differences — chiefly relating to intent, state of mind and deliberate acts of obstruction — that limit the value of any such comparisons. A look at the Clinton, Biden and Trump investigations and what separates them: WHAT DID CLINTON DO? Clinton relied on a private email system for the sake of convenience during her time as the Obama administration's top diplomat. That decision came back to haunt her when, in 2015, the intelligence agencies' internal watchdog alerted the FBI to the presence of potentially hundreds of emails containing classified information. FBI investigators would ultimately conclude that Clinton sent and received emails containing classified information on that unclassified system, including information classified at the top-secret level. Of the roughly 30,000 emails turned over by Clinton's representatives, the FBI has said, 110 emails in 52 email chains were found to have classified information, including some at the top-secret level. After a roughly yearlong inquiry, the FBI closed out the investigation in July 2016, finding that Clinton did not intend to break the law. The bureau reopened the inquiry months later, 11 days before the presidential election, after discovering a new batch of emails. After reviewing those communications, the FBI again opted against recommending charges. WHAT IS TRUMP ACCUSED OF DOING? The indictment filed by Justice Department special counsel Jack Smith alleges that when Trump left the White House after his term ended in January 2021, he took hundreds of classified documents with him to his Florida estate, Mar-a-Lago — and then repeatedly impeded efforts by the government he once oversaw to get the records back. The material that Trump retained, prosecutors say, related to American nuclear programs, weapons and defense capabilities of the United States and foreign countries and potential vulnerabilities to an attack — information that, if exposed, could jeopardize the safety of the military and human sources. Beyond just the hoarding of documents — in locations including a bathroom, ballroom, shower and his bedroom — the Justice Department says Trump showed highly sensitive material to visitors who without security clearances and obstructed the FBI by, among other things, directing a personal aide who was charged alongside him to move boxes around Mar-a-Lago to conceal them from investigators. Though Trump and his allies have claimed he could do with the documents as he pleased under the Presidential Records Act, the indictment makes short shrift of that argument and does not once reference that statute. All told, the indictment includes 37 felony counts against Trump, most under an Espionage Act pertaining to the willful retention of national defense information. WHAT SEPARATES THE CLINTON AND TRUMP CASES? A lot, but two important differences are in willfulness and obstruction. In an otherwise harshly critical assessment in which he condemned Clinton's email practices as “extremely careless,” then-FBI Director James Comey announced that investigators had found no clear evidence that Clinton or her aides had intended to break laws governing classified information. As a result, he said, “no reasonable prosecutor" would move forward with a case. The relevant Espionage Act cases brought by the Justice Department over the past century, Comey said, all involved factors including efforts to obstruct justice, willful mishandling of classified documents and the exposure of vast quantities of records. None of those factors existed in the Clinton investigation, he said. That is in direct contrast to the allegations against Trump, who prosecutors say was involved in the packing of boxes to go to Mar-a-Lago and then actively took steps to conceal the classified documents from investigators. The indictment accuses him, for instance, of suggesting that a lawyer hide documents demanded by a Justice Department subpoena or falsely represent that all requested records had been turned over, even though more than 100 remained. The indictment repeatedly cites Trump's own words against him to make the case that he understood what he was doing and what the law did and did not permit him to do. It describes a July 2021 meeting at his golf club in Bedminster, New Jersey, which he showed off a Pentagon “plan of attack” to people without the security clearances to view the material and proclaimed that “as president, I could have declassified it.” “Now I can’t, you know, but this is still a secret,” the indictment quotes him as saying. That conversation, captured by an audio recording, is likely to be a powerful piece of evidence to the extent that it undercuts Trump's oft-repeated claims that he had declassified the documents he brought with him to Mar-a-Lago. WHERE DOES BIDEN FIT IN? The White House disclosed in January that, two months earlier, a lawyer for Biden had located what it said was a “small number” of classified documents from his time as vice president during a search of the Washington office space of Biden's former institute. The documents were turned over to the Justice Department. Lawyers for Biden subsequently located an additional batch of classified documents at Biden's home in Wilmington, Delaware, and the FBI found even more during a voluntary search of the property. The revelations were a humbling setback for Biden's efforts to draw a clear contrast between his handling of sensitive information and Trump's. Even so, as with Clinton, there are significant differences in the matters. Though Attorney General Merrick Garland in January named a second special counsel to investigate the Biden documents, no charges have been brought and, so far at least, no evidence has emerged to suggest that anyone intentionally moved classified documents or tried to impede the probe. While the FBI obtained a search warrant last August to recover additional classified documents, each of the Biden searches has been done voluntarily with his team's consent. The Justice Department, meanwhile, notified Trump's vice president, Mike Pence, earlier this month that it would not bring charges after the discovery of classified documents in his Indiana home. That case also involved no allegations of willful retention or obstruction. _____ Follow Eric Tucker on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/etuckerAP ___ More on Donald Trump-related investigations: https://apnews.com/hub/donald-trump Read More Ivanka and Jared split over attending Trump 2024 launch – follow live Why was Donald Trump impeached twice during his first term? Four big lies Trump told during his 2024 presidential announcement Jim Jordan rejects Trump statement suggesting Mar-a-Lago papers weren’t declassified Kimberly Guilfoyle posts chilling warning over Trump indictment Trump-appointed judge will stay on Mar-a-Lago documents case unless she recuses

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A new study has found that placenta abnormalities could be the reason for miscarriages. In the United States, there are approximately 5 million pregnancies per year with 1 million ending in a miscarriage and over 20,000 ending in stillbirth, according to a paper published in the journal Reproductive Sciences. “To have a pregnancy loss is a tragedy. To be told there is no explanation adds tremendous pain for these loss families,” said senior author of the paper and research scientist at Yale School of Medicine, Dr Harvey Kliman “Our goal was to expand the current classification systems to decrease the number of cases that remained unspecified.” For the study, researchers worked to create a classification system for miscarriages based on a test that examines a sample of the body’s tissues – known as pathologic examination. The team looked at a series of 1,527 single-child pregnancies that ended in miscarriage, and the data was then sent to Yale for evaluation. After excluding cases without adequate material for examination, 1,256 placentas from 922 patients were examined. Of these, 70 per cent were miscarriages and 30 per cent were stillbirths. By adding the explicit categories of “placenta with abnormal development” (dysmorphic placentas) and “small placenta” (a placenta less than the 10th percentile for gestational age) to other incidents such as cord accident, abruption, thrombotic, and infection – researchers were able to determine the results of 91.6 per cent of the pregnancies, including 88.5 per cent of the miscarriages and 98.7 per cent of the stillbirths. The most common results for unexplained miscarriages were dysmorphic placentas (placenta with abnormal development) which was around 86.2 per cent. For stillbirths, there was 33.9 per cent due to a small placenta. “This work suggests that the over 7,000 small placentas per year associated with stillbirths could have been detected in utero — flagging those pregnancies as high risk prior to the loss,” said Dr Kliman. “Likewise, the identification of dysmorphic placentas may be one way to potentially identify genetic abnormalities in the almost 1 million miscarriages that occur in our country every year.” He said having a definite explanation “for a pregnancy loss helps the family understand that their loss was not their fault, allows them to start the healing process, and, when possible, prevent similar losses — especially stillbirths — from occurring in the future.” When asked what the most effective way might be to prevent stillbirths, Dr Kliman responded, “Measure the placenta!” Read More 'Please, keep beating little heart': Man gives raw account of wife's miscarriage and fears for new unborn child Woman who had six miscarriages celebrates pregnancy with rainbow baby photoshoot Miscarriage: The loneliest grief of all Nearly a fifth of parents fear children will ignore health issues while at university Brits feel their mental health declining due to cost of living crisis How often should you wash your pyjamas?

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England face Colombia in the Women’s World Cup quarter-finals as the Lionesses continue their knockout campaign in Sydney. The European champions survived a major scare against Nigeria in the last-16, winning a tense penalty shoot-out after playing extra time with 10 players as star forward Lauren James was sent off. James, who has been England’s player of the tournament, will be suspended for the quarter-final after the 21-year-old stamped on the back of Nigeria’s Michelle Alozie. Follow LIVE: Women’s World Cup updates as England face Colombia The Lionesses know they will need to improve when they take on a dangerous Colombia side, who shocked heavyweights Germany in the group stages and progressed to their first ever World Cup quarter-final thanks to a 1-0 win over Jamaica in the last-16. England defender Lucy Bronze admitted the Lionesses are “not happy” with their level of performances so far, but victory against Colombia would move Sarina Wiegman’s side a step away from a place in their first ever Women’s World Cup final. Here’s everything you need to know. When is England vs Colombia? The quarter-final will be played on Saturday 12 August at Stadium Australia in Sydney, with kick-off at 11:30am UK time (BST). How can I watch it? It will be shown live on ITV 1 and ITV X, with coverage starting from 10:45am. What is the team news? England have made one change from the last-16, with Ella Toone replacing the suspended Lauren James. Toone comes in for James and could play as No 10, if Sarina Wiegman keeps her 3-5-2 formation. England could also go back to 4-3-3, with Toone joining Keira Walsh and Georgia Stanway in midfield. England’s defence is looking settled is unchanged, but three players are a booking away from being suspended from the semi-finals if England make it through. Georgia Stanway, Bronze and Hemp all come into the match on a yellow card. After her red card against Nigeria, Lauren James will serve a two -match suspension and will miss England’s quarter-final against Colombia. Starting line-up England: Earps; Carter, Bright, Greenwood; Bronze, Stanway, Walsh, Daly; Toone; Russo, Hemp How did both teams reach the quarter-finals? England (Winners Group D) 1-0 vs Haiti 1-0 vs Denmark 6-1 vs China 0-0 vs Nigeria (Won 4-2 on penalties) Colombia (Winners Group H) 2-0 vs South Korea 2-1 vs Germany 0-1 vs Morocco 1-0 vs Jamaica If you’re travelling abroad and want to watch England vs Colombia then you might need a VPN to unblock your streaming app. Our VPN roundup is here to help: get great deals on the best VPNs in the market. Read More Women’s World Cup TV schedule: How to watch every match today England reach World Cup dividing line as Sarina Wiegman faces crunch decision How many games will Lauren James miss at Women’s World Cup after red card?

With a lingering handshake and the type of bombastic language you would expect from two two men trying to ignore their isolation on the world stage Vladimir Putin and Kim Jong-un have met for talks to prop up each other’s regimes. The North Korean leader was the most vociferous in his remarks, offering the Russian presient his full support for Moscow’s "sacred fight" against “imperialism” – an obvious nod to the West and Putin’s invas. Kim added that North Korea's relations with Russia were "the first priority". Putin said in his opening remarks that he was “very glad” to see Kim. Both men need each other. For Putin, the aim will be a deal for weapons and munitions to feed his war machine in Ukraine. With a counteroffensive launched by Kyiv in June, Moscow will have been chewing through artillery shells, missiles and other munitions and domestic production is struggling to keep up as Western sanctions bite. When asked if he and Kim would talk about weapons supplies, Putin replied that the two leaders would discuss “all issues”. For Kim, his nation facing its own sanctions from the UN there will be a push for food and other aid. The location of the meeting – the Vostochny Cosmodrome in the remote region of Amur – is symbolic, with Pyongyang’s leader also after Russian technology to help its satellite and nuclear programmes. Kim’s country has tried – and failed – twice to launch a military spy satellite. When asked if Russia would help the North build satellites, Putin said: “That’s why we came here. The leader of [North Korea] shows great interest in rocket engineering, they are also trying to develop space.” According to Russian state news agency Tass, when asked about longstanding sanctions against North Korea, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said: "Russia maintains its position at the UN Security Council, but this cannot and will not hinder the further development of Russian-North Korean relations." Kim and Putin have ended their face-to-face meeting that lasted over two hours, Russian media reported. An official lunch – comprising of duck salad, crab dumplings, fish soup, sturgeon with mushrooms, and last of all, a berry dessert – followed. During the lunch Putin raised his glass and said: "A toast to the future strengthening of cooperation and friendship between our countries... For the well-being and prosperity of our nations, for the health of the chairman and all of those present." Kim responded in kind saying: "I propose a toast to Putin's health." Before the meeting with the two leaders, both nations fired off drones and missiles. For Russia it was part of its regular aerial assaults on Ukraine, with Kyiv’s air force saying it intercepted 32 of 44 Shahed-type drones launched over Ukraine overnight, with most of the aimed at the southern parts of the Odesa district. Pyongyang fired two ballistic missiles 10 minutes apart from the Sunan area of capital Pyongyang’s international airport towards the country’s eastern seas, South Korea’s joint chief of staff said. Both missiles fell outside Japan’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ), Japan’s chief cabinet secretary Hirokazu Matsuno said. Japan’s Coast Guard said the missiles had already landed but still urged vessels to watch for falling objects. Meeting the North Korean dictator on Wednesday, Mr Putin declared his support for developing controversial reconnaissance satellites following Pyongyang’s multiple failed attempts to put its first military spy satellite into orbit. On Wednesday, Mr Putin received Mr Kim at Russia’s most modern space rocket launch site and said he was “very glad to see” him while Mr Kim thanked him for the invitation to visit him “despite being busy”, according to the Russian state media. An idication of how “busy” came with the news that one of the main Russian bases in the Black Sea been struck in a major attack involving 10 cruise missiles fired by Ukraine. Mr Kim stepped out of his limousine which was brought in his train from Pyongyang after his first stop at the Khasan, at Russia and North Korea’s border on early Tuesday. He walked the red carpet and received a welcome from the military honour guard and a brass band. It is not known how the North Korean leader commands and controls his country’s missile and nuclear forces while abroad. However, analysts have said recent drills have revealed a system for overseeing nuclear weapons similar to those used in the United States and Russia. Mr Putin showed his North Korean guests around Russia’s most modern space launch facility in Vostochny Cosmodrome and hailed their 75 years of diplomatic relations. “We, of course, need to talk about questions of economic cooperation and questions of a humanitarian nature. We have a lot of questions. I want to say that I am very glad to see you. Thank you for accepting the invitation and coming to Russia,” the Russian leader said. Mr Kim said that their meeting “will be the next step to take relations to a new level” and said he supports “all” of Putin’s decisions. “Russia has risen to a sacred fight to protect its sovereignty and security... against the hegemonic forces,” Mr Kim told Putin via a translator. “We will always support the decisions of president Putin and the Russian leadership... and we will be together in the fight against imperialism.” Mr Kim’s delegation is said to include his foreign minister, his top two military officials, and a number of people with connections to the country’s weapons industry, as well as representatives of the country’s space and technology sectors. 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LA PAZ Bolivia's government is determined to curb dependence on the U.S. dollar for foreign trade, instead turning