$4.8M SETTLEMENT REACHED IN TROOPER’S FATAL SHOOTING

The state of Georgia will pay a $4.8 million settlement to the family of a 60-year-old Black man who was fatally shot by a state trooper in 2020 during a traffic stop over a broken taillight, officials said.

Julian Edward Roosevelt Lewis was killed Aug. 7, 2020, after the trooper, Jacob Thompson, spotted him driving at night with a broken taillight, according to a report from the Georgia Bureau of Investigation.

Thompson, who is white, followed Lewis and tried to get him to pull over near Sylvania, Georgia, which is about 60 miles northwest of Savannah. Eventually, Thompson used his patrol vehicle to force Lewis’ car to turn sideways into a ditch.

As he got out of his patrol vehicle, the trooper drew his gun and fired at Lewis after it appeared that Lewis was trying to maneuver his car toward Thompson, the report said, citing the trooper’s account. Lewis was struck once and pronounced dead at the scene.

In a statement Thursday, Hall & Lampros, the law firm representing Lewis’ family, said “it is believed” that Lewis had continued driving because he wanted to go to an area “where he knew other people would be present.”

Taliban announce ban on poppy harvest. KABUL, AFGHANISTAN

» Afghanistan’s ruling Taliban on Sunday announced a ban on harvesting poppies, even as farmers in some parts of the country began extracting the opium from the plant that is needed for making heroin.

The Taliban warned farmers that their crops will be burned and that they can be jailed if they proceed with the harvest. The harvest and planting seasons vary across Afghanistan.

The order also outlawed the manufacturing of narcotics and the transportation, trade, export and import of heroin, hashish and alcohol.

Lithuania cuts off Russian gas imports.

VILNIUS » Lithuania says it has cut itself off entirely of gas imports from Russia, apparently becoming the first of the European Union’s 27 nations using Russian gas to break its energy dependence upon Moscow.

Lithuania managed to reduce imports of Russian gas to zero on Saturday, a move seen a milestone in achieving energy independence in the former Soviet republic of 2.8 million, the ministry said.

Hungary PM claims victory in national vote. BUDAPEST

» Hungary’s nationalist Prime Minister Viktor Orban declared victory in Sunday’s national elections, claiming a mandate for a fourth term as a still incomplete vote count showed a strong lead for his right-wing party.

In a 10-minute speech to Fidesz party officials and supporters at an election night event in Budapest, Orban addressed a crowd cheering “Viktor!” and declared it was a “huge victory” for his party.

Projections point to victory for Serbia’s populist president.

BELGRADE » Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic and his populist right-wing party appeared headed to victory in Sunday’s national election, extending a decade-long authoritarian rule in the Balkan country, according to early pollsters’ projections.

The IPSOS and CESID pollsters, which have proven reliable in previous Serbian ballots, predicted Vucic would end up with nearly 60% of the votes. If confirmed in the official tally, Vucic would win outright a second five-year term as president and a runoff vote would not be needed.

Sri Lanka’s cabinet resigns.

COLOMBO » Sri Lanka’s cabinet resigned en masse Sunday amid street protests and a dire economic crisis, the outgoing health minister said, leading to a vacuum in the leadership of a country largely controlled by its president’s powerful family.

Every member of the cabinet, except for President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and his brother, Mahinda Rajapaksa, stepped down.