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Netanyahu Backs Cease-Fire Deal With Hezbollah, Israeli Hardliner Calls For 'Security Zone' Inside LebanonWest Ham goalkeeper Lukasz Fabianski alert and conscious after being taken off on a stretcher

By Tony Leys | KFF Health News GLENWOOD, Iowa — Hundreds of people who were separated from society because they had disabilities are buried in a nondescript field at the former state institution here. Disability rights advocates hope Iowa will honor them by preventing the kind of neglect that has plagued similar cemeteries at other shuttered facilities around the U.S. The southwest Iowa institution, called the Glenwood Resource Center, was closed this summer in the wake of allegations of poor care . The last of its living residents were moved elsewhere in June. But the remains of about 1,300 people will stay where they were buried on the grounds. The graveyard, which dates to the 1800s, covers several acres of sloping ground near the campus’s brick buildings. A 6-foot-tall, weathered-concrete cross stands on the hillside, providing the most visible clue to the field’s purpose. On a recent afternoon, dried grass clippings obscured row after row of small stone grave markers set flat in the ground. Most of the stones are engraved with only a first initial, a last name, and a number. “If somebody who’s never been to Glenwood drove by, they wouldn’t even know there was a cemetery there,” said Brady Werger, a former resident of the facility. During more than a century of operation, the institution housed thousands of people with intellectual disabilities. Its population declined as society turned away from the practice of sequestering people with disabilities and mental illness in large facilities for decades at a time. The cemetery is filled with residents who died and weren’t returned to their hometowns for burial with their families. State and local leaders are working out arrangements to maintain the cemetery and the rest of the 380-acre campus. Local officials, who are expected to take control of the grounds next June, say they’ll need extensive state support for upkeep and redevelopment, especially with the town of about 5,000 people reeling from the loss of jobs at the institution. Hundreds of such places were constructed throughout the U.S. starting in the 1800s. Some, like the one in Glenwood, served people with disabilities, such as those caused by autism or seizure disorders. Others housed people with mental illness. Most of the facilities were built in rural areas, which were seen as providing a wholesome environment. States began shrinking or closing these institutions more than 50 years ago. The shifts were a response to complaints about people being removed from their communities and subjected to inhumane conditions, including the use of isolation and restraints. In the past decade, Iowa has closed two of its four mental hospitals and one of its two state institutions for people with intellectual disabilities. After closures in some other states, institutions’ cemeteries were abandoned and became overgrown with weeds and brush. The neglect drew protests and sparked efforts to respectfully memorialize people who lived and died at the facilities. “At some level, the restoration of institutions’ cemeteries is about the restoration of humanity,” said Pat Deegan, a Massachusetts mental health advocate who works on the issue nationally . Deegan, who was diagnosed with schizophrenia as a teenager, sees the neglected graveyards as symbolic of how people with disabilities or mental illness can feel as if their individual identities are buried beneath the labels of their conditions. Deegan, 70, helped lead efforts to rehabilitate a pair of overgrown cemeteries at the Danvers State Hospital near Boston, which housed people with mental illness before it closed in 1992. More than 700 former residents were buried there, with many graves originally marked only with a number. The Massachusetts hospital’s grounds were redeveloped into a condominium complex. The rehabilitated cemeteries now have individual gravestones and a large historical marker, explaining what the facility was and who lived there. The sign notes that some past methods of caring for psychiatric patients seem “barbarous” by today’s standards, but the text portrays the staff as well-meaning. It says the institution “attempted to alleviate the problems of many of its members with care and empathy that, although not always successful, was nobly attempted.” Deegan has helped other groups across the country organize renovations of similar cemeteries. She urges communities to include former residents of the facilities in their efforts. Iowa’s Glenwood Resource Center started as a home for orphans of Civil War soldiers. It grew into a large institution for people with disabilities, many of whom lived there for decades. Its population peaked at more than 1,900 in the 1950s, then dwindled to about 150 before state officials decided to close it. Werger, 32, said some criticisms of the institution were valid, but he remains grateful for the support the staff gave him until he was stable enough to move into community housing in 2018. “They helped change my life incredibly,” he said. He thinks the state should have fixed problems at the facility instead of shutting it. He said he hopes officials preserve historical parts of the campus, including stately brick buildings and the cemetery. He wishes the graves had more extensive headstones, with information about the residents buried there. He would also like to see signs installed explaining the place’s history. Two former employees of the Glenwood facility recently raised concerns that some of the graves may be mismarked . But officials with the Iowa Department of Health and Human Services, which ran the institution, said they have extensive, accurate records and recently placed stones on three graves that were unmarked. Department leaders declined to be interviewed about the cemetery’s future. Spokesperson Alex Murphy wrote in an email that while no decisions have been made about the campus, the agency “remains committed to ensuring the cemetery is protected and treated with dignity and respect for those who have been laid to rest there.” Glenwood civic leaders have formed a nonprofit corporation that is negotiating with the state over development plans for the former institution. “We’re trying to make the best of a tough situation,” said Larry Winum, a local banker who serves on the new organization’s board. Tentative plans include tearing down some of the existing buildings and creating up to 900 houses and apartments. Winum said redevelopment should include some kind of memorial sign about the institution and the people buried in the cemetery. “It will be important to us that those folks be remembered,” he said. Activists in other states said properly honoring such places takes sustained commitment and money. Jennifer Walton helped lead efforts in the 1990s to properly mark graves and improve cemetery upkeep at state institutions in Minnesota . Some of the cemeteries are deteriorating again, she said. Activists plan to ask Minnesota legislators to designate permanent funding to maintain them and to place explanatory markers at the sites. “I think it’s important, because it’s a way to demonstrate that these spaces represent human beings who at the time were very much hidden away,” Walton said. “No human being should be pushed aside and ignored.” Related Articles Health | A stroke changed a teacher’s life. How a new electrical device is helping her move Health | Washington power has shifted. Here’s how the ACA may shift, too Health | CDC chief urges focus on health threats as agency confronts political changes Health | New rule allows HIV-positive organ transplants Health | Biden proposes Medicare and Medicaid cover costly weight-loss drugs for millions of obese Americans On a recent day, just one of the Glenwood graves had flowers on it. Retired managers of the institution said few people visit the cemetery, but amateur genealogists sometimes show up after learning that a long-forgotten ancestor was institutionalized at Glenwood and buried there. Former grounds supervisor Max Cupp said burials had become relatively rare over the years, with more families arranging to have deceased residents’ remains transported to their hometown cemeteries. One of the last people buried in the Glenwood cemetery was Kenneth Rummells, who died in 2022 at age 71 after living many years at the institution and then at a nearby group home overseen by the state. His guardian was Kenny Jacobsen, a retired employee of the facility who had known him for decades. Rummells couldn’t speak, but he could communicate by grunting, Jacobsen said. He enjoyed sitting outside. “He was kind of quiet, kind of a touch-me-not guy.” Jacobsen helped arrange for a gravestone that is more detailed than most others in the cemetery. The marker includes Rummells’ full name, the dates of his birth and death, a drawing of a porch swing, and the inscription “Forever swinging in the breeze.” Jacobsen hopes officials figure out how to maintain the cemetery. He would like to see a permanent sign erected, explaining who is buried there and how they came to live in Glenwood. “They were people too,” he said.

Trudeau told Trump Americans would also suffer if tariffs are imposed, a Canadian minister saysShould AI be used to resurrect extinct species like the Neanderthal? | Mohammad HosseiniInvestors and the media tend to overlook the innovation and efficiency that happens inside old-line industrial companies. They instead throw money and attention on flashy, fast-growth tech ideas like AI. I got a fresh reminder not to make that mistake during recent visits to two of Minnesota’s oldest industrial companies, Graco Inc. and Tennant Cos. Both have rich histories, excellent financials and are on the leading edge of technological advances that will guide them for decades to come. They’re also ready to buy other companies at a moment when corporate dealmaking appears likely to accelerate. In 1926, brothers Russell and Leil Gray started a company to sell an air-powered lubricator that Russell developed at a Minneapolis gas station to grease auto parts in cold temperatures. Today, Graco sells more than $2 billion worth of sprayers, pumps and other fluid-handling equipment. (It’s not affiliated with the similarly named baby-products brand owned by Atlanta-based Newell Brands.) The excitement there these days is focused on how electric circuitry is replacing compressed air to pump fluids. With paints, for instance, electrically controlled sprayers turn on and off more precisely, reducing overspray and waste. It’s a significant turning point for Graco. “Air is really inefficient, and a lot of factories used compressed air to move their pumps,” said Mark Sheahan, Graco’s chief executive. “We’ve designed and developed a lot of pumps that are driven by electricity, which is much more efficient and reduces energy by a lot, depending on how often they’re used. We’re in the early innings and I think over time that’ll be great for us.” George Tennant started a woodworking business in Minneapolis in 1870, then turned it into a provider of wooden flooring. His successors in the early 1930s added wood-floor vacuums to their offerings, putting the company on a course to become one of the nation’s largest makers of industrial-scale floor-cleaning equipment. Today, it sells $1.2 billion of those machines each year. The excitement at Tennant these days is about robotics. The innovations in sensors, batteries and software that produced consumer-grade vacuums like Roomba 20 years ago are now so advanced they can guide Tennant’s half-ton (and bigger) cleaning machines around Walmart stores and factory floors. “You’ve got this really interesting nexus where there’s critically important work that has to be done and it’s hard work and nobody wants to do it,” said David Huml, Tennant’s chief executive. “That’s why we get excited about mechanization and robotics. That’s why the space is so attractive to us, and we think that we’ve carved out a significant position.” In 2019, Walmart saw a concept from Tennant for a robotic version of the standup floor washing and scrubbing machine that it used in many stores — and then placed an order so large it sent Tennant’s stock up 20% when news reached investors. It took the company more than a year to make all the machines, keeping its factories humming even after the pandemic arrived in 2020. Now, Tennant has crafted a new strategy for mergers and acquisitions that revolves around opportunities in robotics and automation. Huml said the company will look at firms that make products or technologies that will fill gaps in its product lineup, as well as makers of technologies that enable robotics. It has a list of about 800 potential target companies. “What we’re doing is racking and stacking the 800 based on what we think is most attractive,” Huml said. “And then we’re out shopping ourselves, making sure people know we are in the market ... so that the lines of communication are open.” Tennant earlier this year took a sizable minority stake in a company that provides the key operating software for robotic machines, a move that Huml said the firm may repeat. “I view it as deploying capital to create value for shareholders, just a little differently than a pure acquisition play,” he said. At Graco, free cash flow amounted to $466 million last year, by far a record and more than double its 2022 level. “That’s a pretty big powder keg for us to be able to utilize” for deals, Graco’s Sheahan said. “We also are not afraid of taking debt if we need to. I think we could easily access $2 billion of external debt without jeopardizing the company in any way, shape or form.” Tennant has knocked down its debt and has around $1 billion of borrowing capacity, Huml said. Sheahan, who joined the Tennant board of directors this year, said the environment for companies like theirs is better now that money is more expensive than it used to be. In other words, the higher interest rates that came about to combat inflation took out some of the competition that established companies faced for deals. “When money was free, you would have private equity go out and borrow at virtually 0% and they could bid up and prices would get pretty high,” Sheahan said. “For strategic buyers like us, who have shareholders that demand 10% of their money every year, that math is really hard to compete against.” And what happens now that the Federal Reserve has started cutting interest rates? “That pendulum might swing a little bit differently,” he said. “But for the Gracos of the world, we don’t have to go out and do huge, transformative deals. I think the [mergers and acquisitions] market is in good shape and we should be able to execute better than we ever have.”

China's industrial profits extend decline to a fourth straight month, dropping 7.3% in NovemberA fan who racially abused player in a social media post was banned from attending all games for three years on Tuesday. Charles Ogunmilade, who is Black, admitted to sending a "grossly offensive" message on X, which he claimed was satire of what a racist white person would say. He posted the offensive comment in April 2023 after Partey, a international who is Black, missed a shot during Arsenal's 3-3 draw with . The court in London was informed the post on X was reported to the police, who visited Ogunmilade's home. He said the comment was intended to be a sarcastic quote among a group of friends. "I am not a racist person," Ogunmilade said in court. While issuing his sentence, magistrate Shaoni Myer said Ogunmilade's early guilty plea, prior good character and experience of racism were taken into account. The soccer banning order also requires him to surrender his passport to police whenever the men's national team plays an away game abroad. He was ordered to pay a fine and costs totaling £260 ($325).

Mr Carter, a former peanut farmer, served one term in the White House between 1977 and 1981, taking over in the wake of the Watergate scandal and the end of the Vietnam War. After his defeat by Ronald Reagan, he spent his post-presidency years as a global humanitarian, winning the Nobel Peace Prize in 2002. His death on Sunday was announced by his family and came more than a year after he decided to enter hospice care. He was the longest-lived US president. His son, Chip Carter, said: “My father was a hero, not only to me but to everyone who believes in peace, human rights and unselfish love. “My brothers, sister and I shared him with the rest of the world through these common beliefs. “The world is our family because of the way he brought people together, and we thank you for honouring his memory by continuing to live these shared beliefs.” Mr Carter is expected to receive a state funeral featuring public observances in Atlanta and Washington DC before being buried in his home town of Plains, Georgia. A moderate democrat born in Plains in October 1924, Mr Carter’s political career took him from the Georgia state senate to the state governorship and finally the White House, where he took office as the 39th president. His presidency saw economic disruption amid volatile oil prices, along with social tensions at home and challenges abroad including the Iranian revolution that sparked a 444-day hostage crisis at the US embassy in Tehran. But he also brokered the Camp David Accords between Egypt and Israel, which led to a peace treaty between the two countries in 1979. After his defeat in the 1980 presidential election, he worked for more than four decades leading the Carter Centre, which he and his late wife Rosalynn co-founded in 1982 to “wage peace, fight disease, and build hope”. Mrs Carter, who died last year aged 96, had played a more active role in her husband’s presidency than previous first ladies, with Mr Carter saying she had been “my equal partner in everything I ever accomplished”. Earlier this year, on his 100th birthday, Mr Carter received a private congratulatory message from the King, expressing admiration for his life of public service.Former UFC champion Eddie Alvarez has revealed why Conor McGregor will struggle to escape his UFC contract. McGregor hasn’t fought in the UFC since 2021 when he broke his leg against Dustin Poirier in their trilogy bout. He became the first fighter in Dana White’s promotion to hold two belts simultaneously after knocking out Alvarez eight years ago at UFC 205. Since dropping his lightweight title to McGregor, Alvarez has left the UFC and debuted for ONE Championship. Now, he’s working with the Irishman once again as a star of the Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship (BKFC). “Realistically, I think he still has two fights left on his UFC contract,” Alvarez told MMA Fighting on Wednesday. “I just know how difficult it is, especially when you’re that valuable to a company. “I haven’t been as valuable as Conor, but back when I was basically Bellator’s main guy, I know how difficult it is to get out of those contracts. “They don’t make it easy.” Alvarez makes his third appearance under the BKFC banner against Jeremy Stephens at KnuckleMania 5 in January 2025. McGregor has also reportedly been exploring a move into the bare-knuckle promotion that he became a part-owner of in April. However, the former two-division UFC champion announced this month on social media that he was in talks with YouTuber-turned-WWE star Logan Paul for an exhibition boxing contest. He posted on X: “I am in preliminary agreements with the Ambrani family to face Logan Paul in a boxing exhibition in India. "I have agreed. I will then seek my return to the Octagon." Just two hours after his claim, Jake Paul — Logan’s younger brother, who fought Mike Tyson in November — respoded by stating McGregor had initially contacted him over a possible meeting. He said: "Now it all makes sense why Conor McGregor and his management team have been desperately trying to get MVP to negotiate for a fight between us. "As we told them privately and I’m now saying it publicly... "The only way we’re willing to explore me vs Conor in a pro boxing/MMA fight is if Dana White/UFC are at the table directly or make it clear they are okay with discussions. "Conor is washed. Needs the Paul’s. Logan [to win] by however he wants." Jake and White have gone back and forth in a bitter feud now in recent years and the UFC President has previously declared he would never work with him or his brother. This leaves McGregor in a sticky situation, as he would have to get permission from his boss White to compete against either Paul brother in a boxing bout, just like when he fought Floyd Mayweather . Speaking on McGregor’s potential endeavours into BKFC, Alvarez admitted that a move is unlikely to take place. “For him, making the company hundreds of millions of dollars, I don’t think it’s going to be an easy exit,” he said. “I think he still has two more fights with the UFC, and I’m not sure how old Conor is, but he’s not getting any younger. “It’s going to be tough for him to fight those fights out and move onto another contract. “So realistically, I don’t know if he could fight BKFC, and if he does, it’ll be maybe when he’s older.”