by Julia La Roche -- finance.yahoo.com -- Former Nissan chief Carlos Ghosn slammed the Japanese justice system during his first public appearance since fleeing the country. “I did not escape justice. I fled injustice and persecution, political persecution,” Ghosn said at a press conference in Beruit, Lebanon on Wednesday. “You're going to die in Japan or you've got to get out.” During his speech, he described how he was “brutally taken” from his world as he knew it on the day of his arrest in Japan in November 2018. “I have not experienced a moment of freedom since November 19, 2018. It is impossible — it is impossible to express the depth of that deprivation and my profound appreciation to once again be able to be reunited with my family and loved ones,” Ghosn said. The high-profile auto executive was arrested in November 2018 at the airport in Tokyo on allegations of under-reporting his compensation and misusing company funds. “These allegations are untrue and I should have never been arrested in the first place,” he said. Ghosn, who has maintained his innocence and called the charges against him “baseless,” said his treatment by the Japanese judicial system was a “travesty against his human rights and dignity.” While enduring this “nightmare” imprisonment, Ghosn said his only contact with friends and family was through letters his attorneys showed him through a looking glass.

He added that he spent 130 days in detention and upon being granted bail the first time he sought to share his side of the story only to be “thrown back in solitary confinement within 24 hours.” He called this “confinement that flies in the face of global and United Nations standards of justice.” Ghosn escaped Japan to Lebanon on December 30. However, he said he was “not here today to talk about how I l managed to leave Japan, although I can understand that you are interested in that. I’m here to talk about why I left.”

by foxnews.com --Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have announced they will take “a step back” as senior members of the royal family and instead work independently, splitting their time between the United Kingdom and North America. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex said their decision came "after many months of reflection and internal discussions." "We have chosen to make a transition this year in starting to carve out a progressive new role within this institution," the couple shared on Instagram Wednesday. “We intend to step back as ‘senior’ members of the Royal Family and work to become financially independent, while continuing to fully support Her Majesty The Queen. It is with your encouragement, particularly over the last few years, that we feel prepared to make this adjustment. "We now plan to balance our time between the United Kingdom and North America, continuing to honor our duty to The Queen, the Commonwealth, and our patronages," they continued. "This geographic balance will enable us to raise our son with an appreciation for the royal tradition into which he was born, while also providing our family with the space to focus on the next chapter, including the launch of our new charitable entity."

The couple added they will continue to work with the reigning monarch, 93, as well as Harry’s father Prince Charles, as well as the 35-year-old’s older brother, Prince William. Meghan Markle receives sympathy from Kate Middleton, royal expert claims: 'She wants to patch things up'Video "We look forward to sharing the full details of this exciting next step in due course, as we continue to collaborate with Her Majesty The Queen, The Prince of Wales, The Duke of Cambridge and all relevant parties. Until then, please accept our deepest thanks for your continued support."

by Fred Imbert, Silvia Amaro and Saheli Roy Choudhury cnbc --- Stocks rose on Wednesday after President Donald Trump spoke about an attack by Iran on an Iraqi airbase that houses American troops, which had led to a massive sell-off in overnight trading. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 213 points, or 0.8%. The Nasdaq Composite advanced 0.7% and hit an all-time high. The S&P 500 also climbed 0.7% and hit a record high as well. Trump said Iran appeared to be “standing down” after that nation attacked the Ain al-Asad airbase overnight. However, he added the U.S. will “immediately impose additional punishing economic sanctions on the Iranian regime.” “Now, as the president has to some degree defused some of the anxiety, so you’re getting … a little bit of a sigh of relief rally here,” Art Cashin, director of floor operations at the NYSE for UBS, said on CNBC’s “Squawk Alley.” The president’s comments pressured safe havens such as gold as investors flocked back into riskier assets. Gold futures for February delivery dropped 0.9% to $1,560 per ounce. Overnight, the precious metal jumped to its highest level in about seven years. Investors around the globe had been bracing themselves for a bigger conflict between Iran and the U.S. after last week’s killing of Gen. Qasem Soleimani, a top-ranking Iranian military official. But so far there have been no reports of casualties from Tuesday night’s airstrikes. The attacks did not target oil infrastructure, boosting investor sentiment as well.

by AP — Iran says it has launched “tens” of surface-to-surface missiles at Iraq’s Ain Assad air base housing U.S. troops over …