ESTABLISHED 1965 www.caymancompass.com – 50 CENTS – WEDNESDAY FEBRUARY 13, 2019 High of 84 Low of 73 Slight to moderate with wave heights of 2 to 4 feet. EDITORIAL | PAGE 4 CELEBRATING ERIC BUSH’S PROMOTION TO CAYMAN’S ‘CHIEF PROMOTION OFFICER’ LOCAL | PAGE 2 THE JIMI HENDRIX BOTTLE CAP EXPERIENCE PRICES CONTINUED TO INCREASE IN Q3 KEN SILVA ksilva@pinnaclemedialtd.com The average price of goods and services in Cayman increased by 3.5 percent in the third quarter of 2018 over Q3 of 2017, according to recently released data from the Economics and Statistics Office. The territory had been experiencing falling prices from 2015 through late 2016, but that trend has reversed over the last two years, the statistics show. Inflation increased at a more rapid pace through the first three quarters of last year. The annualized inflation rate averaged 4 per- cent through June 2018, the highest half-year increase since June 2005, according to the Economics and Statistics Office. In Q3, the main driver of inflation was a 6.3 percent increase in transport prices, which was, in turn, caused by a 10.7 percent in- crease in fuel prices and an 8 percent increase in airfares. The Economics and Statistics Office noted that the increase in airfares was the lowest increase in a year. Airfares increased by 52.3 percent in Q2 of 2018, 21.5 percent in Q1, and 31.8 percent in Q4 of 2017. The sector that saw the second highest in- flation rate was housing and utilities, which moved up by 5.5 percent, largely due to elec- tricity rates spiking by 32.3 percent. Housing rental costs were stable during the quarter relative to the same period in 2017. Electricity rates saw a major increase throughout the first three quarters of 2018, rising at an average rate of 23.3 percent during that time. The sharp increase followed slight drops in electricity prices by 1.4 percent apiece in Q3 and Q4 of 2017. Food prices increased by 4.2 percent, driven by rising prices of fruits (11.8 per- cent), dairy products (8.1 percent), and bread and cereals (8 percent). Communication costs rose by 3.5 percent, with telephone equip- ment rising by 10 percent and services Cumber school rated ‘weak’ For the second time in a year, Office of Education Standards inspectors have assessed Sir John A. Cumber Primary School as weak in meeting students’ needs, stating that the school had made little progress on meeting eight of 16 improvement recommendations. For more, see page 5. KAABOO organizers expect sellout MARK MUCKENFUSS mmuckenfuss@pinnaclemedialtd.com KAABOO organizers are ex- pecting a capacity crowd at the two-day festival that starts Friday on the grounds con- structed just north of the Kimpton SeaFire resort. “We have 260 passes left,” Jason Felts, chief brand of- ficer for KAABOO and the man who first envisioned what is the largest concert event ever staged in the Cayman Islands. That means nearly all the 10,000 passes made available for the event have been snapped up and Mr. Felts said on Tuesday he expected the remaining ones to sell out. And, with the on-site preparations nearly complete, he seemed confident things would go off as planned. “It feels good,” he said. “I’m very excited to have the event less than a week away. It’s going Funds raised for Cuban tornado victims Liane Hydes, Mirelys Rivas and Derek Cruz help people make donations to Cuban tornado relief efforts on Saturday. Cubans and Caymanians with ties to Cuba came together over the weekend and preceding days to organize a garage sale which raised nearly US$6,670. For more on this story, see page 2. Chief justice to decide on same-sex marriage JAMES WHITTAKER jwhittaker@pinnaclemedialtd.com Chief Justice Anthony Smellie will de- cide within the next few months whether the Cayman Islands ban on same-sex marriage should be overturned. After three days of legal argument, Chief Justice Smellie retired to consider his deci- sion late Monday afternoon. He did not give a time frame for when he expects to de- liver his judgment on the controversial issue, though it is expected to be sometime within the next two months. Lawyers for Caymanian Chantelle Day and her partner Vickie Bodden Bush have ar- gued that the Cayman Islands constitution entitles them to equal rights to marriage as heterosexual couples. “Time has been called on discrimination based on sexual orientation,” their advocate Edward Fitzgerald, QC, said as he concluded his submissions Monday afternoon. “The dictates of our common humanity require the opening up of the institution of marriage to same-sex couples.” The chief justice is being asked to make a ruling that the Cayman Islands Marriage Law, as written, is out of sync with freedoms guaranteed under the Cayman Islands Con- stitution. Mr. Fitzgerald urged him to use his powers under the constitution to amend the law to allow for same-sex marriage and bring it into balance with the constitution, which outlaws discrimination. PLEASE TURN TO PAGE 6 » PLEASE TURN TO PAGE 7 » PLEASE TURN TO PAGE 7 »2 LOCAL®IONAL WEDNESDAY FEBRUARY 13, 2019 CAYMAN COMPASS Matinees Daily (matinee price before 6pm) Seniors $8.00, Mon-Fri Before 6pm Additional charges apply per 3D/VIP tickets Cayman Cinema@cbcinema6cbcinema6 SATURDAY NIGHT: For your viewing pleasure, minors under the age of 18 will not be admitted to any film starting after 6pm, unless accompanied by their parent. - WEDNESDAY - 640-FILM (640-3456) COLD PURSUIT (R) 1:00 I 4:20 VIP I 7:00 I 10:00 VIP THE KID WHO WOULD BE KING (PG) 12:45 I 3:40 I 6:40 I 9:30 GLASS (PG13) 12:50 I 3:55 I 6:50 I 9:45 WHAT MEN WANT (R) 1:30 VIP I 4:10 I 7:10 VIP I 9:45 THE UPSIDE (PG13) 1:15 I 4:10 I 7:05 I 10:00 MISS BALA (PG13) 1:30 I 4:35 I 7:20 I 9:50 POLICE FIND GANJA IN PROSPECT HOME A 37-year-old George Town man was arrested on suspicion of posses- sion of ganja and pos- session of criminal prop- erty on Friday following a police raid. The Royal Cayman Is- lands Police Service stated its officers and others from Customs and Border Con- trol searched an address on Mahogany Way in Prospect on Friday. During the search, a quantity of suspected ganja in plastic bags, drug para- phernalia, and over $3,000 cash were seized. The man was released on police bail as investiga- tions continue. Community holds fundraiser for Cuban storm victims A group of concerned Cu- bans and Caymanians with ties to Cuba came out over the weekend to raise money for victims of a tornado that struck Havana on Jan. 28. That natural disaster killed four people and injured 197, leaving many families in the Cuban capital dis- trict homeless. A garage sale was held at the main Tortuga Rum Com- pany facility on Saturday to raise funds, and the re- lief effort brought in a total of US$6,669.75. The group fundraiser was titled “Help us Help Them – Stay Strong Cuba,” and it was made pos- sible by donations from the community. The group sold clothing and shoes, furniture and ap- pliances and other items. All of the items sold had been donated by community mem- bers in the week immediately preceding the sale. The event began at 7 a.m. and ended at 2 p.m., and all unsold items will be donated to the Cayman Islands Red Cross. The group also solicited donations from people who did not want to purchase anything. People offered pen- nies and $100 dollar bills and everything in between, said the fundraiser organizers. More than $1,000 of the $6,669.75 came in from dona- tions alone during Saturday’s fundraiser. The money raised will go toward assisting victims and focusing on elder mem- bers of the community with no family assistance, single mothers and the physically or mentally impaired. “We knew we could count on the generosity of the Cayman Islands community,” said organizer Cesar Cruz. “We put the call out on behalf of our Cuban brothers and sisters in need of help, and the true Caymankind spirit of the people who live here rose above and beyond, as they always do.” The Jimi Hendrix bottle cap experience Artwork to feature at KAABOO The spirit of rock legend Jimi Hendrix has been re- vived in a spectacular 8-foot artwork made entirely from recycled bottle caps. Art group Stoak’d will display the work, which has a $20,000 price tag, at the KAABOO festival. The proceeds from the sale, once the festival orga- nizers have taken their cut, will go to nonprofit Plastic Free Cayman. More than 100 people were involved in putting the piece together, using 12,800 bottle caps. Artist Marc Laurenson, who designed the image and orchestrated the project, said it had been a commu- nity effort. He said schoolchil- dren had collected and do- nated thousands of bottle caps to supplement those found during Plastic Free Cayman beach cleanups. Volunteers helped clean and sort the bottle caps by size and color and then, under his direction, they were glued to an 8-foot-by-8-foot plywood board. Mr. Laurenson said the bottle caps worked like pixels in a computer-gen- erated image. “The further away from the image you are, the more clearly you can see that it is Jimi Hendrix,” he said. “The idea is that it can be dis- played at the festival and people will see it from afar. As you get close, you realize it is made from bottle caps.” PRINTERS WAY ROADWORK The National Roads Au- thority is advising that road- work on Printers Way will continue between the hours of 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. on Thursday and Friday this week, during which the road will only be open for local access. The work is part of the ongoing Elgin Avenue and Crewe Road exten- sion project. Drivers are asked to keep watch for traffic di- versions and to drive with caution in the area. A fundraiser at Tortuga Rum Company over the weekend brought in more than $6,500 for victims of a tornado in Cuba. Liane Hydes, Gema Brett and Suly Rodriguez joined in Saturday to help raise funds for the victims of the tornado that struck Cuba last month. Marc Laurenson of Stoak’d with the 8-foot-tall mural of Jimi Hendrix, made from bottle caps. - PHOTO: JAMES WHITTAKER VENEZUELAN OPPOSITION CALLS FOR PROTESTS CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) – Venezuela’s opposi- tion called its supporters into the streets across the country Tuesday in a cam- paign to break the mili- tary’s support of Presi- dent Nicolas Maduro, who refuses to let emergency food and medicine from the United States across the border. Maduro also rallied supporters at rival demon- strations following more than a month of pressure led by opposition lawmaker Juan Guaido, who has pro- claimed himself the coun- try’s legitimate president. The struggle now cen- ters on emergency food and medicine from the United States warehoused on the Colombian border town of Cucuta. Guaido vows to de- liver it to Venezuelans who need it, but his strategy for outmaneuvering Maduro remains unclear. Maduro remains firmly in power and has the backing of the military, which has been blocking the aid he snubs as part of an effort to topple him.3 LOCAL NEWS CAYMAN COMPASS • WEDNESDAY FEBRUARY 13, 2019 Now you can have a fully installed GPS satellite tracking device in your car, shipping container, truck, boat – or even complete vehicle fleet for less than $35 per month with no upfront cost. If your possessions ever get stolen, you can log in through your mobile device to locate it immediately. It can even be given to a family member to ensure you’re aware of their location. To find out more about this special offer contact the Security Centre on 949-0004 or email info @ security.ky Just mention “Sat Trak” to get more information about this great deal. FULLY-FITTED GPS TRACKING UNITS FOR LESS THAN $35 . Pensions Department chastised for its poor record keeping KEN SILVA ksilva@pinnaclemedialtd.com The Department of La- bour and Pensions broke the National Archive and Public Records Law by failing to keep proper records on in- ternal discussions about proposed amendments to a pension plan trust deed, according to Ombudsman Sandy Hermiston. Ms. Hermiston made this observation in a recent deci- sion on a Freedom of Infor- mation Law request made in October 2014 for all records related to the Cayman Islands Chamber of Commerce Trust Deed and all proposed amend- ments made to the deed. The request named a wide variety of records, including correspondence, reports, legal opinions, payments, memo- randa, agendas and minutes of meetings, phone logs and conversation records, inves- tigations, court actions, enti- ties consulted, and records re- lied on by the Superintendent of Pensions in ensuring legal compliance and approving pension plan amendments. The Department of Labour and Pensions initially refused the entire request, and later made some records available during the appeal process. However, the department never provided records re- lated to its internal analysis of proposed amendments to the Chamber pension plan trust deed, because the department did not keep such records. Department officials told the ombudsman that the internal process is largely verbal, and internal emails appear to have been sent only occasionally. Ms. Hermiston took issue with this excuse, writing in her decision: “In my view, the practice of conducting busi- ness verbally renders the in- ternal decisionmaking pro- cess opaque, unaccountable, and contradicts the require- ments of section 6 of the Na- tional Archive and Public Re- cords Law (2015 Revision), which demands that ‘Every public agency shall make and maintain full and accurate public records of its business and affairs …. “The amendment of a pen- sion plan trust deed has the potential to have significant impact on the members of the plan. It is a complex pro- cess in which the Department plays a key role in the re- view and approval of the re- quested amendments.” The ombudsman recom- mended that the Department of Labour and Pensions re- cords fully and accurately all its internal discussions on amendments to pension plan trust deeds from now on. While criticizing the de- partment for failing to record internal analyses, Ms. Herm- iston did agree that other records related to pension plan trust deed amendments should be kept secret. These records include correspon- dence between the depart- ment and the attorney gen- eral’s chambers, which Ms. Hermiston agreed were le- gally privileged. Ms. Hermiston’s decision marked the second time in the last several months that she has criticized a govern- ment entity for not properly keeping records. In November, she denied an appeal for data on how many taxi drivers work for government because she said having the Public Transpor- tation Unit retrieve such in- formation would be an un- reasonable diversion of its resources. In that decision, she found that the Public Transporta- tion Unit’s electronic records system has not been kept up- to-date and is unreliable. “This revelation is trou- bling,” she said in that No- vember decision. “It was ex- plained that the system, while searchable by the name of the taxi operator, is aimed primarily at managing infor- mation on the vehicles used by operators, not about the operators themselves.” Despite disagreeing with the ministry’s time estimate and criticizing the Public Transportation Unit’s re- cord-keeping practices, the ombudsman still found that it would be an unreason- able diversion of resources to comply with the appli- cant’s request. Ombudsman Hermiston added that she commends the ministry for its commit- ment to update its records moving forward, and that she expects the ministry to live up to this promise so statis- tics on taxi operators can be proactively published. Due to the poor state of the records, the ombudsman added that she was “flag- ging” the ministry and the unit for an audit in respect of its record-keeping practices, the modification of its elec- tronic system, and the pro- active provision of relevant statistics. Miss Cayman committee seeking Cayman beauties The Miss Cayman Uni- verse committee and Miss Cayman Caitlin Tyson are searching for young women to enter the 2019 Miss Cayman Pageant. The group is staging a courtesy call to Cayman Brac on Feb. 21-24. Ms. Tyson and committee members will visit schools, the Kirkconnell Community Care Centre and West End Baptist Church, and host an event to recruit contestants for this year’s competition. “We are so excited for this trip, as it presents a won- derful opportunity for the people of the Brac to meet our reigning queen and hear about her recent experi- ences on the Miss Universe journey,” said Derri Dacres- Lee, committee chairperson for the pageant. “We also hope to en- courage the young ladies of the Brac to participate in the 2019 pageant,” she said. The ombudsman recommended that the Department of Labour and Pensions records fully and accurately all its internal discussions on amendments to pension plan trust deeds from now on.The islands’ most-trusted news source 4 – EDITORIAL – Opinion & Letters The Cayman Compass welcomes comments, opinions and viewpoints from readers. Letters to the editor can be emailed to editor@pinnaclemedialtd.com, submitted via www.caymancompass.com, sent by post or hand-delivered to the Compass office. PRINTED AND PUBLISHED BY: Caymanian Compass Limited (a subsidiary of Pinnacle Media Ltd) Compass Centre Shedden Road, George Town SEND US YOUR VIEWS OR NEWS: P.O. Box 1365 Grand Cayman KY1-1108, Cayman Islands Telephone: (345) 815-0095 Email: newsdesk@pinnaclemedialtd.com ADVERTISE WITH US: Telephone: (345) 949-5111 Email: sales@pinnaclemedialtd.com Website: www.caymancompass.com PUBLISHERS DAVID R. LEGGE AND VICKI L. LEGGE EDITOR-IN-CHIEF DAVID R. LEGGE EXECUTIVE EDITOR PATRICK BRENDEL A MEMBER OF THE INTER-AMERICAN PRESS ASSOCIATION “Give light and the people will find their own way” When Eric Bush returns to the Cayman Islands this July, he will arrive with a unique perspective on his home country’s global reputation, and also a Rolodex bursting with contact information for key decision- makers and influencers – two assets that will serve him well as the first Chief Officer for the new Ministry of International Trade, Investment, Aviation and Maritime Affairs. For more than two years in London, Mr. Bush has been delving into the diplomatic arena, interacting with government officials and industry representatives, with one of his key charges being to provide a crucial counter-narrative to the oft-times deliberately demon- izing stories about Cayman and its economic system that generally prevail in the United Kingdom’s capital. Much of Mr. Bush’s work may have taken place in conference rooms, corner offices and oak-paneled boardrooms, but do not let the white-collar or blue- blooded environs deceive you – Mr. Bush’s job descrip- tion is as near to trench warfare as you will find among allies during peacetime. For decades, “The Cayman Islands” have been used as shorthand for a variety of crimes, from tax evasion, to money laundering to terrorist financing. This corrupted image of our islands has been pro- mulgated by big-government crusaders and regula- tors, in harmony with endless journalists, novelists and screenwriters, who personally or politically oppose individual privacy, property ownership, competitive taxation and the free flow of commerce. Indeed, much of Cayman’s current “unpopularity” in the U.K. (not to mention in Brussels) derives from our historical reluctance to defend ourselves against slander, much less to define our own position in the wider world. For decades, successive governments – and the private sector – deserve a D- for their inepti- tude in defending these shores against such reputa- tional calumny. Perhaps there was a time when Cayman and other offshore financial centers could afford to ignore dispar- aging utterances from overseas. Even if that were true at some point, it certainly no longer is, as evidenced increasingly by the waves of assaults on Cayman’s rep- utation, policies and laws by powerful entities such as the OECD, European Union and even the British Parlia- ment. Separately and together, these decisions being made thousands of miles away threaten Cayman’s economy and residents’ way of life. No one understands this better than Mr. Bush, who had a front-row seat for the machinations and backroom maneuvering that led to Parliament’s vote to force British Overseas Territories to adopt public beneficial ownership registries. In his years heading the London Office, Mr. Bush traveled frequently throughout Britain and to Europe to promote, defend and argue on behalf of Cayman. He deserves hazardous-duty pay. His new role will involve similar work elevating Cayman’s standing in the world, albeit with a greater variety of players and on larger stages. Mr. Bush’s new ministry is charged with promoting Cayman and improving its reputation with key constituencies. Item No. 1 on the agenda is the creation of a new Cayman Office for Asia in Hong Kong. And from there, to stra- tegic locations around the globe. We welcome Mr. Bush home and simultaneously wish him farewell on his future journeys. Wherever in the world he is, as long as he is representing Cayman, he has our support and that of his country. Celebrating Eric Bush’s promotion to Cayman’s ‘chief promotion officer’ WEDNESDAY FEBRUARY 13, 2019 • CAYMAN COMPASS The dumbest genre of campaign story PAUL WALDMAN If you decide to run for president, you will have to do many things, not all of them pleasant. You will have to call hundreds or even thousands of people and ask them for money. You will have to pre- tend to be overjoyed to meet every person you encounter, no matter how indifferent they are toward you. And you will be expected to take any food item anyone puts in your hand, appetizing or not, and cram it down your gullet as though you’d been waiting years to get your mouth around a deep-fried Twinkie or squirrel-snout-on-a-stick or whatever is causing a stir at the state fair this year. More than that, though, you will be watched while you eat by the eagle-eyed rep- resentatives of the elite press, who will scrutinize every move of your hand and and twitch of your lip as though they were Soviet figure- skating judges searching for the most minute flaws in your performance. Once the meal is consumed, they will ask: Was that sufficiently au- thentic? Did you order the local delicacy in this place you are not from and may never have visited with the proper words, and eat it with the proper implement? If you failed in this task, you are plainly unable to con- nect with the “real” Ameri- cans whose favor will deter- mine your fate. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand is the latest to fail the test. On a visit to South Carolina, she went to a meeting in a chicken and waffles restau- rant and began eating her chicken with a fork, then noticed that others were using their hands, and po- litely asked the owner what was better. Upon being in- formed that she should use her hands, she did so. But it was too late; her true nature as an out-of-touch fraud had been revealed. “Could this really be the first time in 50 years she ate fried chicken?” a New York Times reporter asked. “Is there anything Gillibrand has done that is not con- trived and opportunistic?” said an esteemed New York Magazine writer. Judgment: Inauthentic. If nothing else, Gillibrand can take solace in having joined a long line of presi- dents and presidential aspi- rants who have fallen short in the culinary authen- ticity department. In 1976, Gerald Ford bit into a ta- male without shucking it first, thereby proving that he would be an enemy of all Latino Americans. New York Mayor Bill de Blasio ate pizza with a fork, like some kind of monster. But nobody was punished more harshly for a food faux pas than John Kerry, who in 2003 made the required pre-Pennsyl- vania primary pilgrimage to the corner of 9th and East Passyunk in Philadelphia, where Pat’s King of Steaks and Geno’s Steaks stare across the intersection in their eternal cheesesteak war. Kerry made the hor- rific mistake of ordering his cheesesteak with that ob- scure, fancy-pants topping known as Swiss cheese, pro- ducing a chorus of contempt from reporters who explained that “real” Philadelphians order their cheesesteaks with Cheez Whiz. Which is itself not true; though many people get Whiz, the best choice is actually provolone (I lived in Philly for a decade). But the point is that Cheez Whiz is, in the estimation of the Washington-based press corps, obviously the most au- thentic choice because they assume it’s the one that blue- collar, down-home, reg’lar- fellas would choose. If a poli- tician has not been properly briefed by their advance team to place the right order or eat in the proper way the judg- ment is swift and harsh. It works even better if re- porters have already decided the candidate is inauthentic, as they had with Kerry – and if the reporters themselves are making their own pos- sibly ill-informed assump- tions about regular people’s food preferences. So a CNN reporter described how she knew Kerry could not con- nect with the masses when he asked for green tea in an Iowa restaurant, as though green tea is some kind of ex- otic concoction the simple folk of the heartland could not possibly have encoun- tered in their charmingly rustic lives. A good deal of campaign reporting is an attempt to take the repetitive events of the campaign trail and not only find something new in them but use the mundane goings-on of the moment as a symbol of something larger and more revealing. Which means that reporters are always on the lookout for screw-ups, especially those that offer an amusing visual. And if the reporter can conde- scendingly explain how “real” people are supposed to act – meaning the reporter him or herself is authentic enough to know, while the politician isn’t – that’s even better. So the next time you en- counter one of these sto- ries, remember that there are foods every single one of us is not sure how to eat, or how to eat in a certain context. It does not make us inau- thentic, and it doesn’t tell you anything about who should and should not be president. Paul Waldman is an opinion writer for the Plum Line blog. © 2019, The Washington Post Writers Group. A good deal of campaign reporting is an attempt to take the repetitive events of the campaign trail and not only find something new in them but use the mundane goings-on of the moment as a symbol of something larger and more revealing.5 LOCAL NEWS CAYMAN COMPASS • WEDNESDAY FEBRUARY 13, 2019 Cumber still showing weak performance MARK MUCKENFUSS mmuckenfuss@pinnaclemedialtd.com John A. Cumber Primary School continues to struggle. For the second time within a year, inspectors from the Office of Educa- tion Standards have as- sessed the school as weak in meeting the needs of stu- dents. Weak is the lowest rating a school can receive. Satisfactory, good and excel- lent are the three remaining designations. Principal Paul Samuels put much of the blame of last year’s assessment on a large number of faculty absences during the inspection period. Mr. Samuels did not return phone calls seeking comment on the most recent report. The report showed the school had weak progress on meeting eight of 16 rec- ommendations made by in- spectors in last year’s as- sessment. Progress on the remaining eight was deemed satisfactory. The report said 10 new teachers and a deputy principal had been hired since the last inspection. Overall, school classrooms were better organized for learning, it said. “There had been a number of improvements in teachers’ planning and in the rigor with which senior leaders monitored the curriculum across the school,” inspec- tors said. “Despite these im- provements, there remained inconsistencies in teaching quality, particularly across Key Stage 2 classes (years 4-6). At most stages of the school, students’ attainment and progress in English and mathematics remained well below local and international standards.” The school performed par- ticularly poorly in math and reading areas. The report said some teachers showed a lack of understanding of the material they were re- quired to teach. In evaluating the use of time in lessons, the report said, “around one third of all observed lessons were found to be weak. Most of the weak lessons were in year 5 and 6 classes, including those les- sons at that stage taught by specialists. Weaknesses in these sessions included teachers’ poor subject knowl- edge in mathematics.” In Year 6 classes, it went on, “teachers’ explanation of concepts was, at times, im- precise, leading to inaccu- racies in students’ math- ematical knowledge and understanding. In other classes in Key Stage 2 there were also incidents observed during the inspection where teachers did not follow their lesson plans and, in deviating from the content, provided incorrect or inaccurate infor- mation to students.” Inspectors said they will revisit the school within six months to see how it is progressing in meeting the team’s recommendations. Two other schools, West End Primary and Little Cayman Education Services were also assessed in the same period. Both schools re- ceived satisfactory ratings. West End Primary staff and faculty were rated good in supporting and guiding students. And student be- havior was good also. How- ever, the survey found weak areas in mathematics attain- ment and progress in science. Little Cayman, which cur- rently has two students on the small island it serves, was found to be either satis- factory or good in all areas of the assessment. For the second time within a year, inspectors from the Office of Education Standards have assessed West Bay’s Sir John A. Cumber Primary School as weak in meeting the needs of students. – PHOTO: TANEOS RAMSAY Car fire charges sent to Grand Court CAROL WINKER cwinker@pinnaclemedialtd.com Charges arising from a car fire were transmitted to Grand Court on Tuesday, when Wayne David Wright Jr. appeared in Summary Court on 12 charges, including two for arson. Magistrate Valdis Foldats set the charges for mention in the higher court on Friday, March 8. He explained that damaging property by fire is charged as arson, which can be dealt with only in Grand Court. Mr. Wright, 21, is charged with damaging a Honda motor vehicle on Oct. 13, 2018, in the vicinity of Watlers Drive, intending to destroy or damage, or being reckless as to whether the ve- hicle would be destroyed. A second charge in con- nection with the same inci- dent involves the allegation of intending to endanger the life of another by the damage or destruction of the ve- hicle, or being reckless as to whether the life of another would be endangered. Mr. Wright also faces five traffic charges and others that include assaulting po- lice. The magistrate set these matters for mention again in Summary Court on the same date that he is to appear in Grand Court. The defendant was rep- resented by attorney Lee Halliday-Davis. The report showed the school had weak progress on meeting eight of 16 recommendations made by inspectors in last year’s assessment.The islands’ most-trusted news source 6 WEDNESDAY FEBRUARY 13, 2019 • CAYMAN COMPASS Ministers’ letter Speaking on the final day of the hearing Monday, Mr. Fitzgerald also delivered a rebuttal to a letter sub- mitted to the court by the Cayman Islands Ministers’ Association at the 11th hour. The letter was not read out in court and may not be ac- cepted as evidence, given that the ministers are not part of the case. Mr. Fitzgerald said it in- cluded the controversial claim that homosexuality is a choice and should there- fore not warrant protection against discrimination. He said this claim was not sup- ported by evidence and was, in any case, irrelevant, as sexual orientation is estab- lished as having protected status from discrimination. He added that other argu- ments submitted by the min- isters included that same-sex marriage posed a threat to public morality – an argu- ment that was raised by the government’s legal team but not pursued during the three- day hearing. “The authors of this mem- orandum have no exclusive ownership of public morality or the interpretation of its re- quirements. They do not even have exclusive ownership of what constitutes the proper Christian approach to the issue,” he said. The legal status of the ministers’ memo is unclear and government’s own legal team appeared to disown the bulk of its content. Sir Jeffrey Jowell, QC, who represented the Cayman Islands government, said his team had presented a case on the basis of fidelity to con- stitutional language and had “taken pains” not to make any “value judgments.” He added, “We completely distance ourselves from that kind of approach and it doesn’t form any part of our argument.” The arguments The gist of the argument made by Mr. Jowell on be- half of the government is that the Cayman Islands con- stitution has a specific mar- riage clause, which pro- tects the right of couples of the opposite sex to marry. He suggested this should be interpreted as an explicit ex- clusion of same-sex marriage that overrides other consti- tutional freedoms, including the right to private and family life and the right to freedom from discrimination. He appeared to concede Monday that this argument could not be applied to civil partnerships, conferring sim- ilar rights to marriage. He ac- cepted the European Court on Human Rights had indi- cated that legal protection of same-sex relationships was obligatory for member states, but said the court had never gone so far as to mandate same-sex marriage. Mr. Fitzgerald said the European Court on Human Rights had established civil partnerships as a min- imum standard, but he in- sisted Cayman’s constitution went further. He said the islands’ con- stitution contained an “over- riding right not to suffer discrimination” and urged the chief justice to rule that same-sex couples were enti- tled not just to civil partner- ships but to full marriage. He insisted the words of the Constitution do not outlaw same-sex marriage, but simply protect it as a right for opposite sex couples. He said it was a “chilling and draconian” consequence of government’s claims that all future legislators would be denied the legislative freedom to introduce same- sex marriage. He said the thoughts of participants in the negotiation process, cited by Mr. Jowell to support his case that the intent was to ban same-sex marriage, were relevant only as a matter of historic interest. “Those participants could not foresee the massive fu- ture development in the right to same-sex marriage and the potential reliance on other provisions of the Constitu- tion,” Mr. Fitzgerald added. Over the course of the hearing, Mr. Fitzgerald argued that his clients faced genuine problems, including uncer- tainty over Ms. Bodden Bush’s immigration status and suc- cession issues concerning their adopted child. He said the Cayman Islands Constitu- tion entitled them to a private and family life, freedom of conscience and freedom from discrimination, which he said added up to a right to access the institution of marriage. After the case closed, the couple’s attorney Ben Tonner, QC, released a brief media statement on behalf of the couple and their legal team. He wrote, “As we have stated in our written argu- ments to the Grand Court, there is dignity in the bond between two people, what- ever their sexual orientation. This fact has been recog- nized time and time again by the highest courts across the common law world. The Pe- titioners have done no more than to ask the Grand Court to recognize and give effect to their fundamental right, as human beings, to dignity and equality of treatment. Chantelle and Vickie would like to thank everyone who has shown them kindness and support throughout the course of this case. We must now await the Chief Jus- tice’s decision.” From left, Chantelle Day, Edward Fitzgerald, QC, Vickie Bodden Bush and Ms. Day’s mother Merta Day leave court Monday after the landmark hearing. - PHOTO: JAMES WHITTAKER Chief justice to decide on same-sex marriage CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 Notorious drug lord ‘El Chapo’ convicted NEW YORK (AP) – Mexico’s most notorious drug lord, Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman, was convicted Tuesday of running an industrial-scale smuggling operation after a three-month trial packed with Hollywood-style tales of grisly killings, polit- ical payoffs, cocaine hidden in jalapeno cans, jewel-en- crusted guns and a naked escape with his mistress through a tunnel. Guzman listened to a drumbeat of guilty verdicts on drug and conspiracy charges that could put the 61-year-old escape artist be- hind bars for decades in a maximum-security U.S. prison selected to thwart an- other one of the breakouts that made him a folk hero in his native country. A jury whose members’ identities were kept secret reached a verdict after de- liberating six days in the ex- pansive case, sorting through what authorities called an “avalanche” of evidence gath- ered since the late 1980s that Guzman and his murderous Sinaloa drug cartel made bil- lions in profits by smuggling tons of cocaine, heroin, meth and marijuana into the U.S. As the judge read the ver- dict, Guzman stared at the jury straight-faced. When the jury was discharged, he leaned back in his chair to catch the eye of his wife, who gave him a subtle thumbs-up. U.S. District Judge Brian Cogan lauded the jury’s me- ticulous attention to detail and the “remarkable” ap- proach it took toward de- liberations. Cogan said it made him “very proud to be an American.” Evidence showed drugs poured into the U.S. through secret tunnels or hidden in tanker trucks, concealed in the undercarriage of pas- senger cars and packed in rail cars passing through le- gitimate points of entry – suggesting that a border wall would not be much of a worry. The prosecution’s case against Guzman, a roughly 5½-foot figure whose nick- name translates to “Shorty,” included the testimony of several turncoats and other witnesses. Among them were Guzman’s former Sinaloa lieutenants, a computer en- cryption expert and a Colom- bian cocaine supplier who underwent extreme plastic surgery to disguise his appearance. One Sinaloa insider de- scribed Mexican workers getting contact highs while packing cocaine into thou- sands of jalapeno cans – shipments that totaled 25 to 30 tons of cocaine worth $500 million each year. An- other testified how Guzman sometimes acted as his own sicario, or hitman, punishing a Sinaloan who dared to work for another cartel by kidnapping him, beating and shooting him and having his men bury the victim while he was still alive, gasping for air. The defense case lasted just half an hour. Guzman’s lawyers did not deny his crimes as much as argue he was a fall guy for govern- ment witnesses who were more evil than he was. In closing arguments, de- fense attorney Jeffrey Lich- tman urged the jury not to believe government witnesses who “lie, steal, cheat, deal drugs and kill people.” U.S. Attorney Richard Donoghue called the convic- tion “a victory for the Amer- ican people who suffered so much” while the defendant poured poison over the bor- ders. He expected Guzman to get life without parole. “It is a sentence from which there is no escape and no return,” Donoghue said. Lichtman described the conviction as “devastating,” but he said he was proud that the defense “left it all on the battlefield.” Deliberations were com- plicated by the trial’s vast scope. Jurors were tasked with making 53 decisions about whether prosecutors have proven different ele- ments of the case. The trial cast a harsh glare on the corruption that allowed the cartel to flourish. Colombian trafficker Alex Cifuentes caused a stir by testifying that former Mex- ican President Enrique Peña Nieto took a $100 million bribe from Guzman. Peña Nieto denied it, but the al- legation fit a theme: politi- cians, army commanders, police and prosecutors, all on the take. The tension at times was cut by some of the trial’s side- shows, such as the sight of Guzman and his wife, Emma Coronel Aispuro, showing up in matching burgundy velvet blazers in a gesture of solidarity. Another day, a Chapo-size actor who played the kingpin in the TV series “Narcos: Mexico” came to watch, telling reporters that seeing the defendant flash him a smile was “surreal.” While the trial was dom- inated by Guzman’s persona as a near-mythical outlaw who carried a diamond-en- crusted handgun and stayed one step ahead of the law, the jury never heard from Guzman himself, except when he told the judge he would not testify. But his sing-songy voice filled the courtroom, thanks to recordings of intercepted phone calls. “Amigo!” he said to a cartel distributor in Chi- cago. “Here at your service.” One of the trial’s most memorable tales came from girlfriend Lucero Guada- lupe Sanchez Lopez, who testified she was in bed in a safe house with an on-the- run Guzman in 2014 when Mexican marines started breaking down his door. She said Guzman led her to a trap door beneath a bathtub that opened up to a tunnel that allowed them to escape. Guzman listened to a drumbeat of guilty verdicts on drug and conspiracy charges that could put the 61-year-old escape artist behind bars for decades. Drug lord Joaquin ‘El Chapo’ Guzman has been convicted on drug-trafficking charges, Tuesday in federal court in New York. – PHOTO: APThe islands’ most-trusted news source 7 CAYMAN COMPASS • WEDNESDAY FEBRUARY 13, 2019 rising by 2.9 percent. Education costs also rose by 3.2 percent as costs in pre- primary, primary, secondary, and tertiary education all saw increases. In health, there was a 1 percent rise in the index for this division, largely traced to prices for pharma- ceutical products rising by 2.6 percent and other medic- inal products by 2.3 percent. Miscellaneous goods and services, as well as recreation and culture also both increased by 0.8 percent and 0.4 percent, respectively. Meanwhile, the prices of clothing and footwear fell by 1.7 percent. Locally pur- chased clothing and footwear fell by 3.5 percent, while the U.S. indices for that category increased by 0.7 percent. Restaurant and hotel prices also decreased by 0.6 percent, and alcoholic beverages and tobacco prices fell by 0.2 percent. to be an incredible weekend. “We’re going to feel we built an incredible experience that is here to stay.” The two-day event fea- tures 20 musical acts on stage, including Duran Duran, the Chainsmokers, Blondie, Jason Derulo and Counting Crows, an indoor comedy club with such per- formers as Norm Macdonald and Wanda Sykes, cooking demonstrations by celebrity chefs and an art exhibit. Mr. Felts, who spent part of his younger years in Cayman, has helped to pro- duce KAABOO Del Mar for four years near San Diego and is also bringing KAABOO to Dallas in May. He started thinking about the Cayman event three years ago. Con- vincing people it could be done here was the hard part. “The largest challenge to Cayman is essentially en- suring our guests and the country feel we’re going to de- liver on our promise,” he said. The public got a reminder of how such big dreams can turn to nightmares when two documentaries on last year’s failed Fyre Festival were re- leased in recent weeks. That high-profile concert event was set to happen in the Ba- hamas. Its implosion – acts pulled out and people were left without food, water and the shelter they were prom- ised – spurred speculation as to whether the same thing might happen with KAABOO. Mr. Felts said he had no qualms about the compar- ison because of KAABOO’s established track record and the fact that Cayman has the existing infrastructure to pull off such an event. “It didn’t cause any trepi- dation,” he said. Festival goers will have easy access to food and water, he said. They will also be able to escape the sun when they need to. A rest area and the cooking venue, as well as beachside areas are covered by awnings, he said. Trees and overhangs will also offer some shade. “With the exception of standing right dead center in front of the stage,” he said, “you can get to shade quickly.” The Fyre Festival also had the difference of being largely targeted at an audience from outside the country. Mr. Felts estimates that 60 percent of the KAABOO crowd will be from Cayman. Of the approx- imately 40 percent coming from off island, he said about half had purchased some level of VIP pass. Plans call for making the KAABOO festival an an- nual event, at least for an- other two years. Mr. Felts said he believes the antici- pated success of the first year will make selling and pos- sibly expanding the event easier in the future. He also thinks it will be good for the Cayman Islands. “The event will have a short-term and long-term ef- fect on the country,” he said. “A lot of people in the States don’t know where Cayman is. It’s definitely going to be a boost to the country’s pro- file. I think the profile for Cayman is going to expand exponentially.” He said not much is left to do other than to enjoy the show, which is not always easy for the person in charge. “I have promised my family I’m going to take a beat, take a pause and take in all the work everyone has done,” he said. “I’m going to work really hard to enjoy it.” KAABOO organizers expect sellout CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 Prices continued to increase in Q3 CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 The territory had been experiencing falling prices from 2015 through late 2016, but that trend has reversed over the last two years, the statistics show. Organizers are expecting 10,000 visitors a day to the KAABOO festival on Friday and Saturday. - PHOTO: TANEOS RAMSAY Jason Felts, chief brand officer for KAABOOThe islands’ most-trusted news source 8 WEDNESDAY FEBRUARY 13, 2019 • CAYMAN COMPASS UK, 3 non-EU nations ink residency deal The British government finalized a deal Friday to allow some 15,000 citizens of non-EU member nations Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein already living in Britain to remain after Brexit even if the country leaves the European Union without a deal. In Loving Memory of our Dad Capt. T. Shelby Hydes Who left us for his Heavenly home one sad and lonely year ago. 7 th June 1928 – 13 th February 2018 He never looked for praise He was never one to boast He just went on quietly working for the ones he loved the most His dreams were seldom spoken his wants were very few and most of the time his worries went unspoken too He was there… A firm foundation through all our storms of life A sturdy hand to hold on to in times of stress and strife A true friend we could turn to From: Your children; Shannon, Brendel, Everard, Sharol, Shauna, Tristan. Grandchildren, great-grandchildren, nieces and nephews. A true friend we could turn toA true friend we could turn toA true friend we could turn toA true friend we could turn toA true friend we could turn to when times were good or badwhen times were good or bad one of our greatest blessingsone of our greatest blessings The man that we called Dad.The man that we called Dad. You will always be with us, in our hearts.You will always be with us, in our hearts. We miss you so much and will love you always.We miss you so much and will love you always. From: Your children; Shannon, Brendel, Everard, Sharol, Shauna, Tristan.From: Your children; Shannon, Brendel, Everard, Sharol, Shauna, Tristan. Grandchildren, great-grandchildren, nieces and nephews.Grandchildren, great-grandchildren, nieces and nephews. GOP leaders back border deal WASHINGTON (AP) – GOP con- gressional leaders on Tuesday swung behind a hard-won agreement to prevent a new government shutdown and fi- nance construction of more barriers along the U.S.-Mexico border, selling it as a nec- essary compromise even as some Republicans on the right voice opposition. It’s not clear whether President Donald Trump will support the deal, although GOP negotiators said they were hopeful. Top Republicans Mitch McConnell in the Senate and Kevin McCarthy in the House both claimed victory, crowing about Democratic conces- sions on new border bar- riers and a late-stage battle over the ability of federal au- thorities to arrest and detain immigrants living illegally in the U.S. “You’ve got to remember where Nancy Pelosi was. She has said, ‘No money for a wall.’ That’s not the case,” Mc- Carthy said on CNBC Tuesday morning. “The Democrats have now agreed to more than 55 miles of new barrier.” However, negotiators said it’s pretty much the deal that Trump could have gotten in December. Aides revealed de- tails under condition of an- onymity because the agree- ment is tentative. Republicans and the White House were desperate to avoid another bruising shutdown. They tentatively agreed Monday night to far less money for Trump’s border wall than the White House’s $5.7 billion wish list, settling for a figure of nearly $1.4 billion, according to congressional aides. The huge funding measure, which combines seven spending bills into one, runs through the fiscal year, which ends on Sept. 30. Details might not be re- leased until Wednesday, but the pact came in time to al- leviate any threat of a second partial government shutdown this weekend. At the White House on Tuesday, spokesman Hogan Gidley was noncommittal: “We want to focus on what’s actually in the document. Until we see that, it’s going to be very difficult to have a conversation about what we will and won’t accept. The agreement means 55 miles of new fencing – con- structed through existing de- signs such as metal slats in- stead of a concrete wall – but far less than the 215 miles the White House demanded in December. The fencing would be built in the Rio Grande Valley in Texas. It closely mir- rors Trump’s original budget request from last winter. The split-the-differences compromise contains plenty to anger lawmakers on the right and left – more border fencing than many Demo- crats would like and too little for conservative Republicans – but its authors praised it as a genuine compromise that would keep the government open and allow everyone to move on. “With the government being shut down, the specter of another shutdown this close, what brought us back together I thought to- night was we didn’t want that to happen” again, said Senate Appropriations Com- mittee Chairman Richard Shelby, R-Ala. “Our staffs are just working out the details,” said House Appropriations Com- mittee Chairwoman Nita Lowey, D-N.Y. The pact also includes in- creases for new technologies such as advanced screening at border entry points, hu- manitarian aid sought by Democrats and additional customs officers. This weekend, Shelby pulled the plug on the talks over Democratic demands to limit immigrant detentions by federal authorities, frus- trating some of his fellow negotiators, but Democrats yielded ground on that issue in a fresh round of talks on Monday. Asked if Trump would back the deal, Shelby said: “We be- lieve from our dealings with them and the latitude they’ve given us, they will support it. We certainly hope so.” But Fox News Channel’s Sean Hannity, a Trump ally, said the barrier money in the agreement was inadequate. He warned late Monday that “any Republican that sup- ports this garbage compro- mise, you will have to ex- plain.” Conservatives like Rep. Mark Meadows, R-N.C., who has the ear of Trump, also came out in opposition. “I would hope that Sean Hannity and all the other people you mentioned aren’t running this government. This was a bipartisan deal, Senate and House, Repub- lican and Democrat,” Demo- crat Lowey said on CNN. Trump traveled to El Paso, Texas, for a campaign-style rally Monday night focused on immigration and border issues. He has been adamant that Congress approve money for a wall along the Mexican border, though he no longer repeats his 2016 mantra that Mexico will pay for it, and he took to the stage as lawmakers back in Wash- ington were announcing their breakthrough. “They said that progress is being made with this com- mittee,” Trump told his audi- ence, referring to the congres- sional bargainers. “Just so you know, we’re building the wall anyway.” Trump aides are dis- cussing using executive action to access other pots of money to build the wall without Con- gress, even if Trump backs the compromise. “We’ll take as much money as you can give us, and then we will go off and find the money someplace else – legally – in order to se- cure that southern barrier,” acting White House Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney told Fox News Friday. He said more than $5.7 billon had been identified that Trump could tap. Democrats carried more leverage into the talks after besting Trump on the 35-day shutdown but showed flex- ibility in hopes of winning Trump’s signature. After yielding on border barriers, Democrats focused on re- ducing funding for deten- tion beds to curb what they see as unnecessarily harsh enforcement by Immigra- tion and Customs Enforce- ment, or ICE. The agreement yielded curbed funding, overall, for ICE detention beds, which Democrats promised would mean the agency would hold fewer detainees than the roughly 49,000 detainees held on Feb. 10, the most recent date for which figures were available. Democrats said the number of beds would be ratcheted down to 40,520 by year’s end. But a proposal to cap at 16,500 the number of de- tainees caught in areas away from the border – a limit Democrats say was aimed at preventing overreach by the agency – ran into its own Re- publican wall. Democrats dropped the demand in the Monday round of talks, and the mood in the Capitol improved markedly. The recent shutdown left more than 800,000 govern- ment workers without pay- checks, forced postponement of the State of the Union ad- dress and sent Trump’s poll numbers tumbling. As sup- port in his own party began to splinter, Trump surren- dered after the shutdown hit 35 days, agreeing to the cur- rent temporary reopening without getting money for the wall. The president’s sup- porters have suggested that Trump could use execu- tive powers to divert money from the federal budget for wall construction, though he could face challenges in Con- gress or the courts. “The president still has a few more tools in his toolbox,” GOP Leader Mc- Carthy said. President Donald Trump speaks during a rally in El Paso, Texas, Monday. A new barrier is built along the Texas-Mexico border near downtown El Paso. Such barriers have been a part of El Paso for decades and are currently being expanded. – PHOTOS: AP9 WORLD®IONAL CAYMAN COMPASS • WEDNESDAY FEBRUARY 13, 2019 US strikes ISIS-held mosque as Syria battle intensifies BEIRUT (AP) – The U.S. mil- itary said Tuesday it struck a mosque that had allegedly been used as an Islamic State control center, as American- allied Syrian forces battled the extremists in their last stronghold in eastern Syria amid reports of more civilian casualties. The U.S.-led coalition said warplanes struck the mosque in the small town of Baghouz on Monday in support of the Kurdish-led Syrian Demo- cratic Forces. It said the air- strike occurred as ISIS was using the mosque to direct attacks and employ suicide car bombs against the SDF. “This mosque lost its pro- tected status when ISIS de- liberately chose to use it as a command and control center,” said the coalition’s deputy commander, Maj. Gen. Chris- topher Ghika. Hundreds of mostly for- eign ISIS fighters are believed to remain in Baghouz and nearby areas, where the SDF began its final push Saturday after months of fighting. ISIS has been fighting back with suicide car bombs, sniper fire and booby traps, and has been using civilians as human shields, slowing the U.S.-backed fighters’ advance. Syrian state media re- ported that about 70 people were killed or wounded in an airstrike by the U.S.-led co- alition on the edge of Bag- houz. It said the airstrike hit a settlement where hundreds of people were taking shelter from the fighting. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a war monitor, said seven children and eight women were killed late Monday in an airstrike near Baghouz. It was not immedi- ately clear if they were refer- ring to the same event. Col. Sean Ryan, a coali- tion spokesman, said “we are aware of open source reports of alleged civilian casualties. We take all allegations of ci- vilian casualties seriously, and understand there is a lot of misinformation as well.” He added that “there are multiple actors conducting strikes within the area, so we are looking into it.” Syrian government forces and their allies have in the past shelled the ISIS-held area. Iraqi forces have struck ISIS targets in Syria from across the border. At least 20,000 civilians have fled the last sliver of ISIS-controlled territory in just the past few weeks. The numbers have overwhelmed Kurdish-run camps in north- eastern Syria, where humani- tarian conditions are already dire amid a cold winter and meager resources. ISIS militants, who once controlled a self-styled ca- liphate sprawling across large parts of Syria and neighboring Iraq, are now besieged from the north and east by SDF fighters, and are hemmed in by the Euphrates River to the west and south. Syrian government forces and their allies are deployed on the river’s west bank. The capture of Baghouz and nearby areas would mark the end of a devas- tating four-year global cam- paign against the extremist group. U.S. President Donald Trump has said the group is all but defeated, and an- nounced in December that he would withdraw all Amer- ican forces from Syria. However, activists and residents in eastern Syria say the militants are still present in recaptured areas, where they are laying the ground- work for a future insurgency. Syrian activists who closely follow the conflict said negotiations are under way between ISIS and the SDF to open a corridor for the extremists to leave the besieged area. The Observatory’s chief Rami Abdurrahman and Omar Abu Laila, who runs a group that monitors develop- ments in the eastern province of Deir el-Zour, said the plan is to evacuate ISIS fighters into an area close to the Iraqi border. The Observatory said the besieged ISIS commanders have about 40 tons of gold and cash worth millions of U.S. dollars that they hope to take with them. The Sound and Picture organization, which reports on atrocities in ISIS-held areas, said an agreement for the evacuation was already reached. It said ISIS com- manders agreed to reveal the fate of foreign hostages that were or are still held by the group and hand over some senior fighters. The SDF spokesman was not immediately available for comment on possible negotiations. In northern Syria, Turkish media reports said a bomb- laden vehicle exploded on the Syrian side of the Al-Rai border gate, opposite the Turkish town of Kilis. There was no immediate word on casualties. This frame grab from video shows U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces fighters looking at smoke rising from a shell that targeted Islamic State group militants, in the village of Baghouz, eastern Syria. – PHOTO: APNext >