In a statement, he said:

Our focus is to make sure that war crimes don’t pay. We want to make it more difficult for those willing to kill en masse to secure their political and economic objectives.

When we’re able to go after the warlords’ wallets and bankrupt those who choose the bullet over the ballot, suddenly the incentives are for peace, not war; transparency, not corruption.”

This doesn’t come completely out-of-the-blue, as the actor has involved himself in African politics before.

Clooney has been involved in using satellites tomonitor military movement across the border between Sudan and South Sudan, as Newsweek reported in 2011.

He also lobbied the US government about the Darfur crisis back in 2006, when Barack Obama was a senator.

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Source: BBC

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The film’s plot sees a black family move into a predominantly white suburban community in the 1950s.
“The trickiest part [of shooting] was, we were in a very racially diverse neighbourhood in Fullerton, California,” Clooney said.

“And we had about 350 extras who were going to hurl a lot of racial slurs and say a lot of pretty terrible things.”

Clooney added: “Everybody who was making the film, we all just felt sick while we were doing it.”

Referring to the way the family is treated in the film, the director said: “These are things that happened – [neighbours] sang church hymns, they hung confederate flags over the fence, they built a fence around their house, these are things that really happened.

“But it was sickening to be part of it quite honestly, so that was one of the most difficult things to shoot.”

The movie, which is currently showing as part of the Toronto Film Festival, was conceived during the run up to the US election of November 2016, which was won by Donald Trump.

Clooney said: “We’d seen some things on the campaign trail where they were talking about building fences, and scapegoating Mexicans and Muslims, and we’re always reminded that these aren’t new things and new moments in our history.

“So we thought it would be interesting to talk about it, but we wanted the film to be entertaining, not a documentary, we didn’t want it to be an eat-your-spinach piece of filmmaking.

“So we merged it with [an existing Coen Brothers script] Suburbicon, because we thought it was a funnier idea to put it in the suburbs in the 1950s where we all thought everything was perfect – if you were a white straight male.”

The actor and director said the real-life political climate the film was shot in ultimately altered the tone of the movie.

“While we were shooting, Trump was elected, and it changed the temperature of the film in a weird way,” Clooney explained.

“The country got angrier, whichever side you were on. We had to cut some of Josh Brolin’s scenes out, and one of the reasons is they were really slapstick funny, and it felt like the wrong tone suddenly.”

The film stars Matt Damon, Julianne Moore and Karimah Westbrook – who drew parallels between her character (the mother of the African-American family) and her own experience of the entertainment industry.

“I think early on there was a lot of correlations as far as what I’ve experienced in Hollywood,” she said.

“I wore my hair natural for a very long time, so when I first moved to Hollywood I had an afro, and my manager said ‘You’ll never work with your hair like that, you’ll have to straighten it’.

“I struggled with that for years, my looks, my hair… but I feel like things have changed so much in the industry, we have so many African-American women starring in shows now, so I feel there’s been progress, but there’s still a lot of things we’re facing on both sides.”

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Source: BBC

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They were born in London on Tuesday morning, the publicist of her actor husband George Clooney said.

“Ella, Alexander and Amal are all healthy, happy and doing fine,” Stan Rosenfield said before joking: “George is sedated and should recover in a few days.”

George, 56, married the lawyer, 39, in September 2014 in Venice.

Amal Clooney’s parents said they were delighted to welcome their grandchildren.

“They are in great health, all is perfect,” Amal’s father Ramzi Alamuddin, who lives in Beirut, told AFP news agency.

“I am very happy for them, they will be great parents.”

Amal’s mother Baria, who is in hospital with her daughter, said: “We are over the moon. It was a beautiful delivery. The babies are beautiful and are doing well.”

Other celebrities have congratulated the couple.

Actress Nicole Kidman, speaking at the Glamour Women Of The Year awards in London, said: “Any time a baby is born, I’m like: ‘Ahhh’. So two babies it’s double ‘ahhh’. They have the most joyful journey ahead.”

Mia Farrow also added her best wishes, tweeting: “Wishing Ella and Alexander Clooney a warm welcome and every blessing – and congratulations to Amal and George!”

Comedian and TV host Ellen DeGeneres tweeted her best wishes with a reference to George Clooney’s Oceans Eleven film franchise: “Welcome to the world, Ella and Alexander Clooney. Congratulations, George and Amal, or as I’m now calling you, Ocean’s Four.”

Social media reaction has included comments about how “normal” the twins’ names are.

One Twitter user wrote: “Classy people give their kids classy names. Ella and Alexander.”

And another tweeted: “What, George and Amal Clooney gave their new twins nice normal names? Ella and Alexander. Isn’t that a violation of celebrity rules?”

The couple’s friend, actor Matt Damon, confirmed that Amal was pregnant with twins back in February.

He was speaking after the news of the pregnancy was reported by CBS’s The Talk host Julie Chen.

Explaining how Clooney revealed the news, Damon said: “I was working with him last fall and he pulled me aside on set and I almost started crying.

“I was so happy for him. And I was like, ‘How far along is she?’ And he goes, ‘Eight weeks.’

“I said, ‘Are you out of your mind? Don’t tell anybody else! Don’t you know the 12-week rule?’ Of course he doesn’t. I was like: ‘Just shut up, man.'”

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Source: BBC

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Mauricio Pinilla, Chile

Footage of Pinilla’s commemorative tattoo has appeared on Twitter

This is the most “World Cup” of World Cup tattoos. Inked in in just the last few days, it serves to remind striker Pinilla of his own near-miss in extra time during the second-round game against Brazil. Chile were later knocked out on penalties, with Pinilla having his attempt saved. The line “One centimetre from glory” adds to the tattoo’s hair-shirt quality. “It illustrates the depth of despair this individual is feeling,” says David Fletcher, a sports psychologist at Loughborough University. “It’s interesting that the tattoo is on his back, rather than his arm or wrist. It suggests that he’s not using it as a spur to further action but more of a statement of how close he came to glory.”

Sergio Ramos, Spain

The twin offerings – one on each calf – from the Real Madrid player show the World Cup and Champions League trophies. Spain did not win the former until 2010, while Real had to wait 12 years to take the latter for a record 10th time. Ramos and his teammates had high hopes of retaining the World Cup trophy in Brazil, but they were knocked out in the first round. “Not every tattoo has a narrative, and even those that do are often contrived,” says Matt Lodder, a body art historian at the University of Essex.

Nigel de Jong, Netherlands

The artist Ade Itameda, who draws inspiration from traditional Indonesian ornaments, patterns and carvings, designed the warrior-like tattoos covering the torso, arms and hands of midfielder Nigel de Jong. “The warrior theme shows just how central the World Cup is to his very being,” says David Fletcher. “It demonstrates that this one, gladiatorial moment in his life is core to his being and that there is no doubt in his mind that this is the defining moment of his life. It’s not just a game to these guys. They’ve trained a whole lifetime and it comes down to a few moments.”

Daniele de Rossi, Italy

The midfielder plays up his own tough approach, which has sometimes got him into trouble, with a mocked-up triangular “hazard” sign of a tackle being performed. It looks like a warning of a slippery floor left behind by an office cleaner. But the tattoo has a bit of extra edge, as the opponent’s leg is hacked away. Because of the need to wear socks during football matches, it is usually seen only in training.

Neymar, Brazil

The injured superstar’s neck inscription has a philosophical edge, much-needed following his team’s semi-final performance. The expression “Tudo Passa” translates into “Everything passes” or “Nothing lasts” in English. Neymar, who left the tournament early with a broken backbone, had to watch as his side were beaten 7-1 by Germany. At least he has the consolation of being only 22 years old, with a chance of making amends for the team in 2018 and 2022. Neymar also has tattoos on his legs saying “Ousadia” and “Alegria”, meaning “daring” and “joy”, both of which he commissioned before joining Barcelona last year.

Raheem Sterling, England

The teenage winger draws inspiration from his childhood in west London, choosing a picture of a 10-year-old boy staring up in wonder at Wembley Stadium’s famous arch, accompanied by the statement: “It’s a dream.” “Wembley was literally around the corner,” he has said. “I used to ride my bike round this little car park that was by the stadium. It’s something that I’ve always wanted – to play for England and be the best I can be as a footballer.”

Raul Meireles, Portugal

The montage adorning the entire right leg of the midfielder, who plays his club football in Turkey, works like an autobiography/travelogue. Designs include the baroque Torre dos Clerigos church in Meireles’ home city of Porto, a cable car (either in Porto or Lisbon, according to the Anglo-Portuguese Society) and a Portuguese Fado guitar. There is a depiction of the Blue Mosque in Istanbul, where his club Fenerbahce is based, at the top of the thigh. This is reached via a red telephone box above the knee – a reminder of Meireles’ time playing for Chelsea and Liverpool.

Tim Howard, USA

The shot-stopper par excellence is one of the most decorated of the players on display in Brazil. He has a Superman logo, dragons and a crucifix among his tattoo collection. It also includes pictures of his mother as a young woman and his grandfather in military uniform, which he had done at the Aurora studio in Lancaster in May. “He brought in some photographs to work from,” says co-owner Sam Wisniewski. “He had obviously thought about what he wanted and he sat down and talked about it. If the design is really personal and we know the full story, that makes the design much better.” Unlike most players, Howard does not usually remove his shirts after matches. In this picture, he was bearing his torso as part of a campaign for the animal rights group Peta.

Lionel Messi, Argentina

Messi has his son Thiago’s name tattooed on to his left calf, underneath a pair of hands, presumably based on those of the child. They are not believed to refer to fellow countryman Diego Maradona’s “hand of God” goal against England in the quarter-final of the 1986 World Cup. Messi’s effort is seldom witnessed in matches because it is usually covered by a sock.

Cristiano Ronaldo, Portugal

The Portugal captain is something of a counter-culturalist in modern football, choosing not to have any tattoos. The reason? He frequently gives blood and it’s not recommended that people do so soon after getting a tattoo or body piercing, for fear of spreading infections. In fact, it’s banned within four months in the UK.

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Source: BBC

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