Huawei et la section IEEE-UAE publient conjointement le livre blanc sur le réseau de conduite autonome des centres de données L3.5

DUBAÏ, UAE14 octobre 2022 /PRNewswire/ — À l’occasion de HUAWEI CONNECT 2022 à Dubaï, Huawei a publié le livre blanc sur les réseaux de conduite autonome L3.5 pour les centres de données, en collaboration avec la section IEEE-UAE et les précurseurs de l’industrie, Ankabut des EAU et Commercial Bank of Kuwait (CBK). Ce livre blanc fournit un aperçu approfondi de l’architecture, des capacités clés et des scénarios d’application typiques des réseaux de conduite autonome (ADN) L3.5 dans les scénarios de centres de données, ainsi que des pratiques de déploiement dans des secteurs clés tels que la finance, les services publics et l’énergie. Ce livre blanc constitue un point de référence informatif pour les entreprises et peut aider à porter l’automatisation et l’intelligence des réseaux de centres de données (DCN) à de nouveaux niveaux.

White Paper Launch Ceremony

Selon le livre blanc, alors que l’économie numérique devient un moteur essentiel de la croissance économique mondiale et que les centres de données d’entreprise se développent rapidement, les réseaux de centres de données doivent de toute urgence relever les défis suivants :

  • Les réseaux hétérogènes multicloud et multi-DC sont devenus la norme pour les entreprises. Ainsi, les entreprises clientes ont besoin de gérer et de coordonner de manière centralisée les centres de données (DCN) multiclouds et les périphériques réseau multifournisseurs.
  • L’ADN doit s’intégrer de manière transparente aux systèmes d’exploitation et de maintenance et aux processus informatiques des entreprises, qui varient considérablement d’une entreprise à l’autre, afin de mettre en œuvre une gestion intelligente en boucle fermée tout au long du processus.

Pour relever les défis susmentionnés, le livre blanc propose le réseau de conduite autonome de centre de données L3.5, qui met en œuvre des capacités d’automatisation et d’intelligence de haut niveau telles que la gestion unifiée, l’orchestration et la collaboration flexibles, et la simulation dans des réseaux multiclouds et multifournisseurs, en plus de l’interconnexion avec les systèmes de gestion informatique des entreprises pour réaliser une automatisation de bout en bout.

Le livre blanc illustre les technologies clés des ADN L3.5 pour les centres de données :

  • Plateforme de programmabilité ouverte : gestion centralisée de réseaux et de dispositifs hétérogènes.
  • Plateforme d’orchestration Intent : permet de mettre en œuvre des réseaux hétérogènes multicloud et multifournisseurs hautement automatisés et de provisionner des réseaux cross-cloud en quelques secondes.
  • Les API publiées à partir de flux de services orchestrés : s’intègrent de manière transparente aux systèmes d’exploitation et de maintenance et aux processus informatiques de l’entreprise, réduisant ainsi le nombre de bons de travail et la quantité de travail manuel répétitif de plus de 70 %.

« Le réseau de conduite autonome des centres de données de Huawei est le premier du secteur à évoluer de L3.0 à L3.5. C’est le résultat de notre connaissance approfondie des scénarios de service du monde réel et des problématiques des clients dans des secteurs tels que la finance, le service public et la fabrication, ainsi que de nos innovations conjointes avec les précurseurs de l’industrie », a déclaré Arthur Wang, vice-président du domaine des réseaux de centres de données de Huawei. « Le livre blanc partage les meilleures pratiques à travers ces secteurs, afin d’améliorer la compétitivité des entreprises en optimisant leurs architectures réseau et leurs modes de fonctionnement et en les aidant à construire des services agiles et fiables tout en réduisant leurs OPEX et CAPEX. »

À ce jour, la solution de réseau de conduite autonome pour centre de données de Huawei a été déployée dans les centres de données de plus de 10 000 clients dans des secteurs tels que la finance, les services publics, la fabrication et l’énergie.

Pour plus d’informations, veuillez consulter le site Web du réseau de centres de données pour la conduite autonome :
https://e.huawei.com/en/solutions/business-needs/enterprise-network/data-center-network-new/adn

Pour télécharger le livre blanc sur le réseau de conduite autonome des centres de données L3.5, , veuillez consulter le site suivant :
https://e.huawei.com/en/material/networking/604d7c910e884a0d9005cdb0513c87ee

Photo – https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1920614/image.jpg

HUAWEI CONNECT 2022 à Dubaï : Une infrastructure innovante stimule la transformation numérique industrielle

DUBAÏ, Émirats arabes unis14 octobre 2022 /PRNewswire/ — HUAWEI CONNECT Dubai s’est tenu aux Émirats arabes unis. Plus de 3 000 intervenants de l’industrie se sont réunis pour discuter du thème « Une infrastructure innovante pour libérer le numérique ». Des représentants du ministère égyptien de l’Enseignement supérieur et de la recherche scientifique, de Galaxy Backbone Limited au Nigeria, de Huawei et d’autres organisations ont partagé leurs dernières pratiques en matière de numérisation, explorant de nouvelles voies vers la transformation numérique industrielle.

Steven Yi, President of Huawei Middle East & Africa Area

Ken Hu, président tournant de Huawei, a prononcé un discours décrivant trois façons dont l’écosystème des TIC peut aider à surmonter les obstacles communs à la transformation numérique :

  • Renforcer l’infrastructure numérique, y compris par le biais d’une connectivité plus robuste et de ressources informatiques plus solides et plus diversifiées.
  • Aider les entreprises à aller au-delà de la simple adoption du cloud et à en tirer le meilleur parti, en mettant l’accent sur les services technologiques de pointe qui favorisent le développement de nouveautés.
  • Développer des écosystèmes numériques locaux, y compris en développant des partenaires, en renforçant le vivier de talents numériques et en apportant plus de soutien aux PME.

Steven Yi, président de Huawei au Moyen-Orient et en Afrique, a prononcé la déclaration préliminaire exprimant sa gratitude aux clients et partenaires pour leur confiance continue, et a réaffirmé l’engagement de Huawei à contribuer au développement local. Il a également parlé de trois initiatives clés de Huawei et de ses clients et partenaires pour libérer la productivité numérique. Ensemble, ils travaillent à bâtir une base numérique solide pour tous et à renforcer les écosystèmes numériques locaux pour soutenir l’avenir des nations numériques.

Des technologies novatrices fondées sur des scénarios améliorent l’infrastructure numérique pour libérer la productivité numérique

Bob Chen, vice-président de Huawei Enterprise BG, a indiqué que la synergie multitechnologies est essentielle pour déterminer la technologie correspondant à chaque situation. Il a expliqué dans son discours d’ouverture, intitulé « Les infrastructures numériques innovantes accélèrent la transformation numérique », que « les données sont au cœur de la transformation numérique, et leur acquisition, leur transmission, leur stockage et leur analyse en sont des étapes essentielles. Huawei propose des produits et des gammes de produits complets pour le traitement des données de bout en bout, ce qui permet de favoriser la transformation numérique des clients. »

En termes de connectivité des données, Huawei a présenté NetEngine AR5710, une passerelle hyper-convergente idéale pour les petites et moyennes branches, et NetEngine 8000 F8, un routeur d’agrégation à service universel ultra-compact. Ces produits tout nouveaux aident à établir une base de données solide pour libérer davantage la productivité numérique.

En termes de transmission de données, Huawei a exploré comment appliquer l’évolution du réseau fixe de cinquième génération (F5G) dans diverses industries. En outre, Huawei et un client de Dubaï ont lancé conjointement une solution numérique d’inspection de couloir de pipeline basée sur la technologie de détection de fibre optique, permettant l’inspection automatique de couloir de pipeline.

En ce qui concerne le stockage de données, Huawei et Commvault, une société de logiciels de gestion de données, ont lancé conjointement une solution de protection des données, qui offre aux entreprises clientes une protection des données sécurisée et fiable de bout en bout. Cela permet de créer une base de stockage fiable et efficace, permettant aux entreprises de maximiser la valeur des données.

Joy Huang, présidente de Huawei Cloud Strategy & Industry Development, a souligné que l’approche de la transformation numérique de Huawei repose sur trois piliers : une infrastructure plus verte, une innovation continue et une expérience partagée. Huawei Cloud vise à être le meilleur partenaire de numérisation pour les clients, et travaille avec des partenaires et des clients pour libérer le numérique grâce à sa stratégie « Everything as a Service ».

Une infrastructure innovante est déployée dans les industries en vue de stimuler la numérisation industrielle

Lors de l’événement, des clients de diverses industries au Moyen-Orient et en Afrique ont également partagé leurs meilleures pratiques avec Huawei dans la transformation numérique.

Le Dr Hesham Farouk Ali, ministre adjoint égyptien de l’enseignement supérieur et de la recherche scientifique, a déclaré que les TIC rendraient l’éducation plus centrée sur les individus et accéléreraient la transformation des méthodes d’enseignement et d’apprentissage. L’expertise de Huawei dans les réseaux d’éducation et de recherche, le cloud et l’IA fournit un soutien clé et jette les bases de la numérisation de l’enseignement supérieur en Égypte.

Baffajo Beita, directeur informatique de Galaxy Backbone Limited, a déclaré que Galaxy et Huawei ont innové ensemble pour aider le Nigeria à construire un réseau cloud unifié d’e-gouvernement, accélérant la numérisation du gouvernement et stimulant l’économie numérique du pays.

Programme Huawei Empower : créer un écosystème numérique florissant pour les partenaires mondiaux

Au cours de cet événement, Huawei a présenté son programme Huawei Empower, qui vise à contribuer au développement d’un écosystème numérique prospère pour ses partenaires internationaux. Ce programme permettra à Huawei d’innover conjointement avec ses partenaires par le biais des OpenLabs, de donner à ses partenaires les moyens d’agir grâce à un nouveau cadre, un nouveau modèle et une plateforme intégrée, et de constituer un vivier de talents grâce aux programmes Huawei ICT Academy et Huawei Authorized Learning Partner (HALP). Huawei a également annoncé un investissement de 300 millions de dollars américains dans ce programme au cours des trois prochaines années pour soutenir ses partenaires mondiaux.

Photo – https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1920448/image.jpg

Huawei Releases the White Paper On Electric Power Communication All-Optical Network, Accelerating Digital Transformation of Electric Power

DUBAI, UAE, Oct. 14, 2022 /PRNewswire/ — At HUAWEI CONNECT 2022 Dubai, during the Huawei Global Electric Power Summit themed “Unleash Digital and Create New Value for Electric Power”, Huawei released the White Paper on Electric Power Communication All-Optical Network Architecture and Technologies to facilitate the digital transformation of the electric power industry.

Jason Li, Director of Marketing & Solutions Sales, Huawei Electric Power Digitalization Business Unit, gave a speech in which he emphasized that the power communication network is the basis for automatic power grid dispatching, market-oriented network operations, and modernized management. He also noted that such a network is an important means to ensure secure, stable, and economical operations of the power grid as well as the core infrastructure of the power system. The White Paper, released by Huawei, describes how to build an intelligent optical base for power communication networks based on the all-optical architecture. It also aims to help the electric power industry cope with digital challenges, meet technical requirements for digital transformation, and accelerate digital transformation.

Huawei Releases the White Paper On Electric Power Communication All-Optical Network

The digital transformation of the electric power industry requires the power communication network to inherit the hard pipe technology used on production network services — such as SCADA, security and stability system, and teleprotection — to ensure high reliability and deterministic low latency of the production network. In addition, the power communication network must also be capable of carrying future-oriented services, such as situation awareness and IoT, to improve the scalability of network bandwidth and the flexibility of multi-service bearing. With the development of the fifth-generation fixed network (F5G), the optical service unit (OSU), as the fifth-generation native hard pipe (NHP) technology, takes the best of both SDH and OTN technologies. It supports the ultra-high bandwidth beyond 100G, and provides 2 Mbit/s to 100 Gbit/s service access capabilities, meeting needs of both production network services and future-oriented services. These strengths make OSU the preferred solution for digital power grid network construction and SDH network upgrade.

According to the White Paper, the OSU technology is integrated into the backbone network, power transmission and transformation network, and substation/power distribution network to implement highly secure bearing of network services at each layer. The architecture implements E2E one-hop transmission from the substation/power distribution network to the backbone network, making the NHP all-optical architecture the optimal architecture of the power communication network. Specifically, the NHP all-optical architecture of the power communication network has the following features:

  • The NHP all-optical architecture features high network compatibility, service isolation, and wide site coverage. It enables networks at each layer to inherit the original hard pipe technology and ensures smooth evolution of service systems.
  • The OSU technology implements one-hop transmission of E2E services, ensuring secure isolation between service systems. In addition, uniform management interfaces and technical standards are provided to simplify management and O&M.
  • OSU over Passive Optical Network (OSU over PON for short) implements hard pipe PON, extending NHP to scenarios such as substations. E2E hard pipes and hard isolation not only implement E2E service provisioning, but also ensure service security and quality.
  • In terms of security, the NHP all-optical communication network systems are physically isolated from each other. Based on the zero-trust framework, an in-depth defense system is built for the power communication network to meet the availability, reliability, and resilience requirements of electric power services.

Huawei has been working in the optical network field for nearly 30 years and has maintained the largest market share in the global optical network market for 13 consecutive years. Huawei makes full use of its technological prowess to continuously explore the electric power industry. Together with the upstream and downstream of the industry chain, Huawei has provided secure, stable, and reliable all-optical communication network solutions for countries and regions such as China, Thailand, Brazil, the UAE, and Austria, accelerating the digital transformation of the electric power industry and reshaping industry productivity.

For more information about the White Paper, please visit:
https://e.huawei.com/en/material/enterprise/fd3fb19ea33042bea73b87a6a966d2f1

Photo – https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1921330/image_986294_36939663.jpg

 

Huawei Intelligent Cloud-Network Upgrades Capabilities in Three Scenarios Based on Innovative Technologies

DUBAI, UAE, Oct. 14, 2022 /PRNewswire/ — During HUAWEI CONNECT 2022 Dubai, Huawei unveiled the upgraded capabilities of its Intelligent Cloud-Network Solution at the “Intelligent Cloud-Network, Unleashing Digital Productivity” summit. These capabilities, which center on three major scenarios —CloudFabric 3.0, CloudCampus 3.0, and CloudWAN 3.0— are provided to meet network development trends. Huawei also released the L3.5 Data Center Autonomous Driving Network White Paper, together with IEEE-UAE Section and pioneering customers, to contribute to the thriving data communications industry and unleash digital productivity.

The changes in enterprise business are driving the development of enterprise ICT infrastructure, and IP networks — serving as the bridge between IT and CT and covering all production and office procedures of enterprises, constitute the connectivity foundation for industry digital transformation. Networks have never been more important than they are today.

Daniel Tang, CTO of Huawei Data Communication Product Line, delivers a speech entitled "Intelligent Cloud-Network, Leading Future Digital Innovation"

Daniel Tang, CTO of Huawei Data Communication Product Line, shed light on how to respond to future development trends and address network challenges. According to Daniel Tang, Huawei keeps innovating data communications technologies in areas such as Wi-Fi 7, 400GE, IPv6 Enhanced, multi-cloud synergy, autonomous driving network, and ubiquitous security. With these innovative technologies, Huawei has upgraded its capabilities in three scenarios: CloudFabric 3.0, CloudCampus 3.0, and CloudWAN 3.0.

  • CloudFabric 3.0

Huawei CloudFabric 3.0 offers full-lifecycle intelligent capabilities for multi-cloud and multi-vendor networks based on L3.5 ADN technology. Stand-out features include unified management and control, flexible orchestration and collaboration, simulation & verification, risk prediction, and unified O&M for applications and networks. Plus, this solution facilitates easy interconnection with customers’ IT management systems to achieve end-to-end automation. Key results include easy deployment, easy O&M, and easy evolution.

By leveraging Huawei’s ADN and hyper-converged Ethernet technologies, Ankabut is building the world’s first HPC supercomputing center with Ethernet and InfiniBand co-cluster.

At the summit, Huawei, together with IEEE-UAE Section, Ankabut of UAE, and CBK of Kuwait, released the L3.5 Data Center Autonomous Driving Network White Paper.

  • CloudCampus 3.0

Huawei further upgraded its CloudCampus 3.0 offerings by unveiling a host of flagship products, including the first enterprise-class Wi-Fi 7 AP AirEngine 8771-X1T, next-generation flagship core switch CloudEngine S16700, and 4-in-1 hyper-converged enterprise gateway NetEngine AR5710.

Huawei CloudCampus 3.0 helps enterprises simplify their campus networks from four aspects: access, architecture, branch, and Operations and Maintenance (O&M).

  • CloudWAN 3.0

In the WAN field, Huawei continues to innovate technologies such as SRv6, FlexE slicing, and application-based IFIT measurement, and all of these technologies rely on IPv6 Enhanced. Huawei has further upgraded its CloudWAN 3.0 offerings to achieve agile connectivity, deterministic experience, and agile O&M and launched an ultra-high-density multi-service aggregation router — NetEngine 8000 F8 — to improve digital productivity with agile connectivity.

With Huawei’s help, the Gauteng province successfully deployed the first 100GE private network in South Africa — GBN.

The future digital world is full of uncertainties. As the saying goes, “If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.” Mindful of this, Huawei strongly advocates partnerships and will continue to cooperate and innovate with more customers and partners in the data communication field. Vincent Liu, President of Huawei’s Global Enterprise Network Marketing & Solutions Sales Dept, highlighted that Huawei has set up many regional joint innovation labs and OpenLabs. Through these labs, Huawei is well poised to jointly innovate with customers from sectors such as public service, oil and gas, electric power, finance, education, and ISP. These concerted efforts pay off in many high-value application scenarios and achieve remarkable results. To date, Huawei has already trained and certified 188,000 data communication engineers, providing a large pool of ICT talent for digital transformation across industries.

Photo – https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1921355/image_986294_38236382.jpg

Madison Realty Capital Originates $32 Million Loan for Multifamily Development in Seattle

NEW YORK, Oct. 14, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Madison Realty Capital, a vertically integrated real estate private equity firm focused on debt and equity investment strategies, today announced that it has provided a $32 million loan to Vibrant Cities for a recently completed, eight-story mixed-use residential and retail property located in the Capitol Hill neighborhood of Seattle, Washington.

The 95-unit property, known as Pivot Apartments, received TCO in May, and is 69% leased to date. Additionally, Pivot contains 4,900 square feet of ground floor retail space that is fully leased to Wasabi Sushi, La Cocina Oaxaqueña, and Social Tea. Thirty of the property’s residential units are fully leased for use as short-term rentals to Sonder USA Inc., a boutique hospitality company and short-term rental manager. Located at 1208 Pine Street, Pivot is ideally situated for professionals directly off Interstate 5, within minutes of multiple public transit options, and borders Seattle’s Central Business District, home to Fortune 500 companies and popular Seattle tourist destination, Pike Place Market. The Property participates in Seattle’s Multifamily Tax Exemption Program by designating 20% of the residential units as affordable.

Josh Zegen, Managing Principal and Co-Founder of Madison Realty Capital, said, “Pivot offers centrally located, flexible short- and long-term living options for Seattle’s robust employment market. We are pleased to further expand our presence in the Pacific Northwest by delivering a customized financing solution to Vibrant Cities, an experienced developer in Seattle with an extensive history of delivering high-quality multifamily properties.”

Ming Fung, Co-Founder and President of Vibrant Cities, added, “Madison Realty Capital’s team deeply understood our vision for Pivot Apartments and its place within Seattle’s most dense and hippest neighborhood located within walking distance to the core of downtown Seattle. Their reputation for professionalism and certainty of execution made them the best choice to complete this exciting new development in Seattle’s Capitol Hill.”

Pivot contains a unit mix of studio, one-, and two-bedroom residences with modern interiors, high-efficiency HVAC systems, LED light fixtures, and built-in closets, with some units offering private balconies and in-unit washer/dryers. Community amenities include an outdoor deck, parking garage, bike storage, on-site office, and fitness center for both long-term and short-term tenants.

About Madison Realty Capital 

Madison Realty Capital is a vertically integrated real estate private equity firm that, as of August 31, 2022, manages approximately $9.5 billion in total assets on behalf of a global institutional investor base. Since 2004, Madison Realty Capital has completed approximately $21 billion in transactions providing borrowers with flexible and highly customized financing solutions, strong underwriting capabilities, and certainty of execution. Headquartered in New York City, with an office in Los Angeles, the firm has approximately 70 employees across all real estate investment, development, and property management disciplines. Madison Realty Capital has been named to Commercial Observer’s prestigious “Power 100” list of New York City real estate players. To learn more, follow us on LinkedIn and visit www.madisonrealtycapital.com.

Nathaniel Garnick/Grace Cartwright
Gasthalter & Co.
(212) 257-4170
madisonrealty@gasthalter.com

Wildlife populations plunge 69% since 1970: WWF

 Wild populations of monitored animal species have plummeted nearly 70 percent in the last 50 years, according to a landmark assessment released Thursday that highlights “devastating” losses to nature due to human activity.

Featuring data from 32,000 populations of more than 5,000 species of mammals, birds, amphibians, reptiles and fish, the WWF Living Planet Index shows accelerating falls across the globe.

In biodiversity-rich regions such as Latin America and the Caribbean, the figure for animal population loss is as high as 94 percent.

Globally, the report found that monitored animal populations had fallen 69 percent since 1970.

Marco Lambertini, director general of WWF International, said his organisation was “extremely worried” by the new data.

“(It shows) a devastating fall in wildlife populations, in particular in tropical regions that are home to some of the most biodiverse landscapes in the world,” he said.

Mark Wright, director of science at WWF, said the figures were “truly frightening”, particularly for Latin America.

“Latin America is renowned for his biodiversity of course, it’s really important for lots of other things as well,” he said.

“It’s super important for regulating the climate. We estimate currently there’s something like 150 to 200 billion tonnes of carbon wrapped up in the forests of the Amazon.”

That is equivalent to 550 to 740 billion tonnes of CO2, or 10 to 15 times more than annual greenhouse gas emissions at current rates.

The index found that freshwater species had declined more than those found in any other habitat, with an 83-percent population fall since 1970.

The report found that the main drivers of wildlife loss are habitat degradation due to development and farming, exploitation, the introduction of invasive species, pollution, climate change and disease.

Lambertini said the world needed to rethink its harmful and wasteful agricultural practices before the global food chain collapsed.

“Food systems today are responsible for over 80 percent of deforestation on land, and if you look at the ocean and freshwater they are also driving a collapse of fishery stocks and populations in those habitats,” he said.

With world leaders due to convene in Montreal for the COP15 biodiversity summit in December, the report authors called for an international, binding commitment to protect nature, similar to the 2015 Paris Agreement on climate change.

– ‘Need to act now’ –

The Living Planet Report argues that increasing conservation and restoration efforts, producing and consuming food more sustainably, and rapidly and deeply decarbonising all sectors can alleviate the twin crises of climate change and biodiversity loss.

It also calls for governments to properly factor into policymaking the value of services rendered by nature, such as food, medicine and water supply.

“We need to stress the fact that nature loss is not just a moral issue of our duty to protect the rest of the world. It is actually an issue of material value, an issue of security for humanity as well,” said Lambertini.

Some areas experienced more population loss than others — Europe, for example, saw a wildlife population decline of 18 percent.

“But that also masks historic, very extreme losses of biodiversity,” said Andrew Terry, director of conservation at the Zoological Society of London, which helped compile the data.

“We know that we’re coming out of (a) low point in the state of biodiversity in the northern hemisphere.”

In Africa, where 70 percent of livelihoods rely on nature in some form, the report showed a two-thirds fall in wildlife populations since 1970.

Alice Ruhweza, Africa regional director at WWF, said the assessment showed how there was a “huge human cost” when nature is lost.

She said young people in particular were concerned about wildlife preservation, and would push governments to implement greater protective measures.

“We have a young, entrepreneurial and increasingly educated population that is showing more awareness around issues of nature,” said Ruhweza.

“So the potential for transformative change is really significant. But the time is running short, and we need to act now.”

Source: Seychelles News Agency

Judge Rules New DACA Program Can Continue Temporarily

A federal judge ruled Friday that the current version of a federal policy that prevents the deportation of hundreds of thousands of immigrants brought to the U.S. as children can continue, at least temporarily.

U.S. District Judge Andrew Hanen — who last year declared the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program illegal — said that the policy, which is set to proceed under new regulations at the end of the month, can continue with limitations that he previously set.

Those limitations say there can be no new applicants for DACA and that those who are already in the program can continue to be in it and renew their applications.

During a court hearing Friday, Hanen ordered attorneys for the federal government to provide more information on the new rule and said he expects additional legal arguments related to it, but there was no timetable set for future hearings. It’s also unclear when Hanen will give his final decision on the case, which is expected to end up at the U.S. Supreme Court.

“The legality of the new DACA regulation … is now the task before this court,” said Nina Perales, an attorney with the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund, or MALDEF, who is representing DACA recipients.

Karina Ruiz De Diaz, one of the DACA recipients being represented by MALDEF, said she was relieved Hanen kept the program in place but upset the judge declined to open it up to thousands of new applicants who need its protections.

Ruiz was part of a group of more than 50 community activists and DACA recipients who gathered before and after the hearing in support of the program at a park next to the federal courthouse. They held up signs that said, “Judge Hanen Do the Right Thing Protect DACA” and “Immigrants Are Welcomed.”

The current version of DACA, which the Biden administration created to improve its chances of surviving legal scrutiny, is set to take effect Oct. 31.

The case went back to Hanen after the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans said last week he should take another look at DACA following revisions adopted by the Biden administration.

Hanen last year declared DACA illegal after Texas and eight other Republican-leaning states filed a lawsuit claiming they are harmed financially, incurring hundreds of millions of dollars in health care, education and other costs, when immigrants are allowed to remain in the country illegally. They also argued that the White House overstepped its authority by granting immigration benefits that are for Congress to decide.

“Only Congress has the ability to write our nation’s immigration laws,” Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton said Thursday.

Hanen found DACA had not been subjected to public notice and comment periods required under the federal Administrative Procedures Act. But he left the Obama-era program intact for those already benefiting from it, pending the appeal. There were 611,270 people enrolled in DACA at the end of March.

A three-judge panel of the New Orleans-based appeals court upheld Hanen’s initial finding but sent the case back to Hanen so he could review the impact of the federal government’s new DACA regulation.

During Friday’s hearing, Hanen seemed hesitant about tackling the constitutionality of the DACA program with any ruling he would make and said he wanted all parties involved to initially focus on issues related to the federal Administrative Procedures Act in reviewing the new regulation.

Perales said the uncertainty about DACA’s fate in the courts should be another signal to Congress that it needs to act to provide permanent protections.

After last week’s appeals court ruling, President Joe Biden and advocacy groups renewed their calls for Congress to pass permanent protections for “Dreamers,” which is what people protected by DACA are commonly called. Congress has failed multiple times to pass proposals called the DREAM Act to protect DACA recipients.

Whatever Hanen decides, DACA is expected to go to the Supreme Court for a third time. In 2016, the Supreme Court deadlocked 4-4 over an expanded DACA and a version of the program for parents of DACA recipients. In 2020, the high court ruled 5-4 that the Trump administration improperly ended DACA, allowing it to stay in place.

Source: Voice of America

Actor Robbie Coltrane, Harry Potter’s Hagrid, Dies at 72

Robbie Coltrane, the baby-faced comedian and character actor whose hundreds of roles included a crime-solving psychologist on the TV series “Cracker” and the gentle half-giant Hagrid in the “Harry Potter” movies, has died. He was 72.

Coltrane’s agent, Belinda Wright, said he died Friday at a hospital in his native Scotland, and but did not immediately release other details. She called him “forensically intelligent” and “brilliantly witty” in just one of many tributes made to him.

“Harry Potter” author J.K. Rowling, who decades ago said Coltrane was her first choice to play Hagrid, tweeted Friday that he was “an incredible talent, a complete one off.”

“I was beyond fortunate to know him, work with him and laugh my head off with him,” she wrote.

Born Anthony Robert McMillan in Rutherglen, Scotland, Coltrane was in his early 20s when he began pursuing an acting career and renamed himself in honor of jazz musician John Coltrane.

He had a notable screen career, with credits including “Mona Lisa,” “Nuns on the Run” and Kenneth Branagh’s adaptation of “Henry V” when he broke through on his own as a hard-bitten criminal psychologist in “Cracker,” the 1990s TV series for which he won best actor at the British Academy Television Awards three years running.

He went on to appear in all eight “Harry Potter” movies as the young wizard’s mentor and had a wide variety of other parts, including a Russian crime boss in the James Bond thrillers “GoldenEye” and “The World is Not Enough” and Pip’s guardian Mr. Jaggers in a 2012 adaptation of Dickens’ “Great Expectations.” More recently, he received rave reviews for playing a beloved TV star who may harbor a dark secret in the 2016 miniseries “National Treasure.”

On Friday, his “Nuns on the Run” co-star Eric Idle tweeted that he had been talking about Coltrane, “wondering where he was,” when he learned of his death.

“Such a bright and brilliant man. A consummate actor, an extraordinarily funny comedian and an amazing actor. He was also a very good friend,” Idle wrote.

Wright said Coltrane is survived by his sister Annie Rae, his ex-wife Rhona Gemmell and his children, Spencer and Alice.

Source: Voice of America