Gulf Empress Assassinated, Prime Minister Detained as Possible Suspect

Today, Pamela Beesly, Empress and Wife of Chancellor Holland of the Gulf Empire, has been brutally murdered in her bed last night and current evidence points to Prime Minister Jim Halpert as a possible culprit, resulting in his detainment until further charges can be mounted against him or evidence proves otherwise.

LIMA, PERU, GULF EMPIRE: According to an official statement released by the Dept of Imperial Affairs for the Gulf Empire, Empress Pamela Beesly has been assassinated or murdered last night, roughly around 12:00 AM to 1:00 AM according to the report. According to the report, her body was discovered around 6:00 AM in her chambers in the Imperial Palace and upon examination of the body, it was found that she had been dead for five hours. According to the report, she had 36 stab wounds but no signs of a struggle, leading authorities to believe that the first few stabs were lethal and while she was still asleep.

According to the report, slippers belonging to Prime Minister Halpert were discovered in the room and further search of his own room reportedly revealed a bloody robe and knife that resembled the kind used in the stabbing. According to the report, investigation is still underway and tests are being done on blood samples found on Halpert's clothes and review of security tapes are being done. Halpert is currently being detained but apparently has not been charged yet.

The official statement was issued by the Imperial Dept of Affairs and the statements notes that more developments will be reveled to the public in the future. So far, photographic evidence and interview requests have been denied and no officials have spoken out publicly. We have also to wait for the responses of foreign leaders who have also not yet spoken and we will keep updates posted. 

Martinesia Divided over International Diplomacy

The Federation of Martinesia is divided over a new legislative proposal stewing in the Commission that will define the region's foreign policy, dictate the process of embassy creation and acceptance, and call for all Martinesia to join the Congress of Nations, as a whole.

Junsse Building, Seria, Roxia: Headquarters of the Martinesian Commission

SERIA, ROXIA: The Commission of Martinesia, the executive body of the Federation of Martinesia and sole organ with power of legislative initiation, is undergoing the process of drafting a legislative proposal to the federation as a whole that will completely reshape Martinesia's foreign policy. Although the details of the proposal have not yet been leaked to the public or the press, Commission officials have hinted that this new proposal will completely change Martinesian foreign affairs. 

The first big change of the proposal, according to Commission President Gerry Joules, is that the constituent republics of Martinesia will not longer have initiative when it comes to membership to international organizations and creation of embassies, both at home and abroad. The proposal is guessed to give the powers of embassy creation and maintenance to the Commission instead and all embassies will be neutral for the entire region.

But perhaps the largest topic of debate expected to rise up is what to do about membership to the Congress of Nations. Currently, four out of the ten member republics have membership with the Congress of Nations: Trafalgar, San Andreas, Sunlaya, and Roxia. However, rather than having individual nations as members, the new proposal is expected to require all member nations to terminate their membership to the Congress of Nations and allow for the reentry of the whole union as a sovereign whole.

For some nations like Bosrat and Marland who have voiced heavy opposition against joining the Congress of Nations, this is a bad idea but other nations have been pushing for more CON members and this method they consider is the best to get full membership to the Congress of Nations. The proposal is expected to be released to the public sometime tomorrow as it is submitted before the Council of Ministers tomorrow for their feedback. 

Gulf Imperial Governor of Colorado, Michael Scott, Fired

Michael Scott, the Governor of the Gulf State of Colorado, has been removed from office by an executive order from Chancellor DesJarlais, stating mental health concerns although political reasons are highly suspect.

Michael Gary Scott, the current Governor of Colorado, was removed from office yesterday by Chancellor DesJarlais for "mental health" reasons

Denver, GCNA: Yesterday, Michael Gary Scott, the Governor of the State of Colorado, was notified that Chancellor DesJarlais had approved an order removing him from office and replacing him temporarily with the chief military commander for Colorado. Although the actual transcript of the papers were not provided, President Jose Francisco Mariscos of the Gulf Commonwealth of the North America gave a statement to the press that Governor Scott suffered from a personality disorder that led to eccentric behavior and this has impaired him from serving to his fullest capacity.

While possibly politically motivated, it is worth to note that the state of Colorado has been undergoing some chaotic times with mass protests springing up across the state and on more than one occasion, the military had to seize to control of the state due to Governor Scott's inactivity. 

However, others are speculating that this is a signal of the disfavor beginning to overshadow Pamela Beasley, the Chancellor's wife, and Prime Minister Jim Halpert. Many others including Governor Karen Fillipeli of New York and Governor Mark Beasley of Pennsylvania are also now  fearing for their jobs and possibly even lives as the Chancellor has been showing incredible disinterest for his wife and her cronies. 

So far, Michael Scott has accepted his fate and immediately resigned but rumor has it that he might have attempted to challenge the order, backing down after being threatened with execution.

President Rick Perry of Texas Indited for Corruption Charges

In a rare strike at President Perry in a move considered ridiculous even by the Democrats, government prosecutor Michael McCrum has lodged charges of corruption and abuse of office against President Rick Perry.

Above: Mugshot of President Rick Perry taken after turning himself in to authorities 

Austin, Texas: On August 15, a grand jury indicted President Rick Perry on crimes of corruption and abuse of power brought against him by a county prosecutor named Michael McCrum. The charges are based around a grapple of power that began a while back between President Perry and Rosemary Lehmberg. Lehmberg was a district attorney who also the head of the Public Integrity Unit, a government watchdog agency tasked with monitoring the actions of the national and county governments. She also happened to be a Democrat as well and did have a history of opposing Perry's policies.

A while back, she was caught driving under the influence of alcohol and caused a car accident, resulting in her being charged and sentenced to 45 days in a county jail. As a result, President Perry gave calls for her to step down as District Attorney and PIU head but she refused and President Perry threatened to use his veto power to cut most of the funds to the PIU.

Although he had the right to veto the bill, the act of using his powers for retaliation are what the prosecutor is using. Perry has also ignored past offenses in office and the fact that he is taking up issue in this case with a Democrat is why people consider this to be corrupt. If the district attorney had stepped down, Perry would have been able to replace her with one of his own men.

Perry completely believes he is in the right after he was indited, he turned himself in to authorities where he was photographed and put into the system. He has also hired an army of attorneys and believes that he will win this case. While he may clear this road block, if found guilty, he could be sentenced for as long as 99 years in prison. 

The political consequences of this are not negative for Perry and his party as it is only serving to strengthen their image and paint the Democrats as cheaters attempting to gain control of the state through legalities and technicalities rather then democracy, according to members of the Republican Party. However, this could have unintended international consequences though as this is sure to be greeted with pleasure by Texas's enemies.

INTERVIEW: President Landev on the Upcoming Treaty Signing In Kiev

Today, Alice Sheffield sat down with President Dmitry Landev of Nolgaria to talk about the upcoming international convention in Kiev that begins tomorrow. Below is the official transcript

SHEFFIELD: Good Evening, your Excellency and thank you for taking the time to participate in this interview. All the world has its eyes on you and all Norupean nations.

LANDEV: Thank you for the opportunity, Madam Sheffield. We are honored to be on the world spotlight.

SHEFFIELD: Your welcome. We are all away that for the past month or so, five delegates from the five Norupean nations have been meeting in the International Conference of Nolgarian Nations under the roof of Kiev and that they have drafted a treaty that creates a new international union between your five nations. Could you reveal to us some of the info on the treaty and when it will be released to the public?

LANDEV: That is true that we have been drafting a treaty but it currently has only been viewed by the convention members. Versions were also sent to all the governments of the member states but it is at the discretion of all participating heads of states to reveal the treaty's contents and so far, we have not decided to do so yet.

SHEFFIELD: Would you feel at ease to discuss certain aspects of the treaty? Surely you have seen it yourself?

LANDEV: Oh yes, me and Prime Minister Sveyia have both already viewed the treaty. To put it simply, it creates an economic, cultural, and political union for all five of our Norupean nations but we do have provisions for future expansion of membership to other nation states.

SHEFFIELD: We are aware that many different dignitaries will be in attendance. Are you at leisure to discuss who will be attending?

LANDEV: Currently, me, Prime Minister Sveyia, and Minister Utkin will be in attendance of course. I also know that His Majesty George II, Grand Duke of Weselton and Chancellor  Herman Goering will be in attendance. His Majesty King Filip III and his Prime Minister Fredrick Norgard will be attendance from the Southern Isles. His Majesty King Wilhelm and Prince Eugene will be in attendance from Corona. We are also honored to host Her Majesty Queen Elsa and Prime Minister Timothy DesJarlais as well from Arendelle. They all will be escorted of course by their ministers of foreign affairs.

SHEFFIELD: Are you at leisure to discuss their itinerary with us?

LANDEV: Their specific itineraries are confidential but I can tell you this. At noon tomorrow all the dignitaries will arrive at the airport where I will personally welcome them all to Nolgaria. They will then travel in parade style to the Intercontinental Hotel. We have a ball later for them at 6:00 PM. The next morning we will have mass or church services and at noon, we will have a giant banquet. At 4:00 PM tomorrow, we will meet at the Ukrainian House to sign the treaty into law.

SHEFFIELD: Thank you. And how are you handling security issues and concerns?

LANDEV: Many of my top military commanders have already covered this topic many times and I fully trust there will be no incidents during the duration of this conference. We have numerous elite units in the city and all streets and locations around the meeting side and routes will be closed temporarily. We are also working closely with each official's bodyguards and protection to maximize our security effectiveness. 

SHEFFIELD: How do you feel about Nolgaria hosting this event? I know that Caucasian Rus's past history has been dark and that you have campaigned and pushed for a more diplomatic and peaceful Nolgaria. Do you feel that Nolgaria's role in this organization fulfills your goal?

LANDEV: My goal is continuing to be fullfilled, Madam Sheffield but yes, I do feel that our participation in this convention is greatly beneficial to our diplomatic relationships.

SHEFFIELD: And how will you be treating dissenters? It is likely that there are many anti-New World Order groups that may try to stage protests? Also, how will you handle foreign press and journalists, like us?

LANDEV: Wow, lots of questions. I will treat all peaceful demonstrations as I have treated them in the past, with respect toward their freedom of speech. I implore all protesters though to treat these foreign guests with respect and I will not tolerate insulting them or booing them when they arrive. As for journalism, I will allow at certain times for the dignitaries to be interviewed by the media but we will not allow them to stalk them everywhere they go.

SHEFFIELD: Alright, and on a closing note, do you have any thing to say to the world or your nation about tomorrow?

LANDEV: Yes, Nolgaria, Arendelle, Corona, Southern Isles, and Weselton are about to make history. We are on the verge of a union that will benefit all and I implore civility, peace, and freedom from dissension. Let tomorrow and Sunday be days to celebrate the gentle bonds that hold us together, not the cultural and social divides that separate us. 

SHEFFIELD: Well put, Your Excellency. Thank you for taking the time to do this quick survey and we eagerly await tomorrow.

LANDEV: Your welcome. Nolgaria is ready for tomorrow and we hope all of Norup is.

NEWS: Nolgaria Busy Prepping for International Summit

On Sunday, July 20th in Kiev, Nolgaria, the heads of state, government, and foreign affairs of Arendelle, Corona, Southern Isles, Weselton, and Nolgaria are to sign the Treaty of Kiev which will create a new international union called the Norupean Union and Nolgaria is scrambling to beautify Kiev before the big event.

KIEV, Nolgaria-Throughout Kiev, especially along the designated route between the Zhuiliany International Airport and the Intercontinental Hotel, large crews of Nolgarian workers can be seen at work, planting flowers, cleaning the streets, and trying to erase the many graffiti eyesores that grace the buildings along the route.

Large groups of civilians have been seen also painting peace symbols and different tributes to international union in celebration of the great event of Sunday. This is going to be a big day for the Norupean region, one that will not be forgotten in history. There is also much fear of possible terrorism as well though from various factions and the military and police have been increasing their hold over Kiev as a "temporary" measure until the dignitaries have retired. 

One of the many paintings being done in Kiev by locals to welcome the foreign dignitaries in on Saturday

SPORTS: Dunder Mifflin and Wesellton Advance to Second Elimination Round

In Madrid and Barcelona, two more victories and defeats were made as Dunder Mifflin defeated Marland and Weselton crushed Tawia. Both advance to fight some of the most skilled players in the FIFA World Cup.

Today, in Madrid, the newly-famous team from Dunder Mifflin Incorporated defeated Marland 1-0 in a close match. Being a team comprised of paper salesmen and employees, this is probably one of the most singular feats in World Cup history. However, their future looks bleak as on Friday, they are scheduled to face of the dreaded team from the Gulf Empire. 

Weselton won a more sure victory against Tawia in 3-1 but they have to face off against Pollaya, another world football champion on Saturday. Tomorrow is also expected to be a tight match of Rizealand vs San Andreas and Waldbestland vs Southern Isles.