GOP blocks Democratic Senate effort to advance Equal Rights Amendment

By Doug Cunningham

GOP senators Thursday blocked Democratic efforts to remove a ratification deadline so the Equal Rights Amendment can be added to the U.S. Constitution. Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y. changed his vote to no afterward in procedural move so he can bring up the resolution again in the future.

April 27 (UPI) -- Senate Republicans Thursday blocked Democratic efforts to advance the Equal Rights Amendment by removing the deadline to ratify the proposed constitutional amendment. The ERA prohibits discrimination based on sex.

The motion to invoke cloture would have ended the debate and paved the way for a vote on extending the ERA ratification deadline. It failed 51-47 because it needed 60 votes to pass.

Sens. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska and Susan Collins, R-Maine, were the only Republican yes votes.

Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y. changed his vote to a no vote afterward to preserve an ability to bring it up again under Senate rules.

RELATED Coalition of multiracial congresswomen launch ERA caucus to ratify 28th Amendment

"This resolution is as necessary as it is timely. America can never hope to be a land of freedom and opportunity so long as half of its population is treated like second-class citizens," Schumer said on the floor of the Senate before the vote.

The ERA was first introduced in 1923 and has already been ratified by 38 states, meeting the three-fourths requirement for putting the ERA into the U.S. Constitution.

But some of them ratified it after the deadline.

The full text of the ERA says, "Equality of rights under the law shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any state on account of sex. The Congress shall have the power to enforce, by appropriate legislation, the provisions of this article. This amendment shall take effect two years after the date of ratification."

The U.S. House voted to extend the ratification deadline in 2021 under Democratic leadership, but the U.S. Senate has not voted to extend the deadline.

BP facing shareholder backlash over scaled-back climate goals

British energy company BP is facing shareholder backlash for scaling back its climate objectives and investing more in crude oil and natural gas. 

File photo by Alexis C. Glenn/UPI | License Photo

April 27 (UPI) -- British energy company BP is facing backlash from shareholders who are upset about its about-face on climate targets from earlier this year, multiple reports on Thursday showed.

Representatives from five pension funds -- Border to Coast, Brunel Pension Partnership, LGPS Central, Nest and Universal Pension Scheme -- told the BBC they were concerned that scaled-back climate objectives expose the energy company to financial risk.

"Not only were we disappointed to see the company going back on the targets, but we were also really surprised not to have had any consultation," Katharina Lindmeier at Nest told the BBC.

BP pivoted on its carbon emissions strategy, announcing plans in February to invest $8 billion in new oil and gas production over the next seven years -- the same as it will spend on bioenergy, EV charging, hydrogen and renewable power.

The move was part of a plan to boost the group's before-tax earnings to as much as $56 billion in 2030 and comes as BP posted a $27.7 billion net profit for 2022, more than double its 2021 profit.

Apart from spending, the company reset its target for lowering emissions by the end of the decade from 35%-40% for the end of the decade, set three years ago, to 20%-30% earlier this year.

Separate reporting from CNBC finds shareholders may express their frustration at BP's annual meeting Thursday by voting against the reappointment of BP Chairman Helge Lund. Follow This, a Dutch activist investor holding shares in BP, put forward a resolution, meanwhile, calling on the British energy giant to align its strategy with the Paris climate accord.

RELATED EU, Norway form a Green Alliance to facilitate the energy transition

"We trust that investors who hoped that voting was not necessary in 2022, now realize that voting is crucial to compel BP to align with Paris," Mark van Baal, founder of Follow This, was quoted as saying ahead of BP's annual general meeting.

BP and many other energy companies, however, are embracing the technology needed to move away from fossil fuels. European lawmakers have said "the age of hydrogen," an emerging source of clean energy, is upon us and BP has plans to invest some $2 billion to establish a hydrogen hub in Spain.

CEO Bernard Looney said his company is working to "provide the energy the world needs today."

Hyundai to stop selling machinery used for illegal Amazon mining


Hyundai announced Friday that it would work to prevent its heavy machinery from being used for illegal mining in the Amazon rainforest. Photo by Christian Braga/Greenpeace


SEOUL, April 28 (UPI) -- Hyundai announced it would take steps to prevent its heavy machinery from being used for illegal mining in the Amazon, the company announced Friday, in the wake of a report by environmental group Greenpeace that exposed the widespread utilization of its excavators for gold mining in Indigenous territories.

In a statement, HD Hyundai Construction Equipment said it would stop selling heavy machinery in the Brazilian states of Amazonas, Roraima and Pará until it can strengthen its sales process and compliance system. The company also announced it would terminate its contract with a local dealership, BMG, which facilitated sales to illegal miners.

Hyundai added that it would do "as much as possible to protect the Amazon environment and Indigenous people, and cooperate with the Brazilian government to the extent necessary for this purpose."

In a report released earlier this month, Greenpeace said that at least 75 excavators made by Hyundai were being used for illegal gold mining in the Yanomami, Munduruku and Kayapó protected Indigenous territories between 2021 and March 2023. The Hyundai machines accounted for 43% of the total discovered during flyovers by Greenpeace investigators, making them the most popular brand for miners.




Heavy equipment has helped gold mining on Indigenous lands grow by almost 500% over the past 12 years, Greenpeace said, accelerating deforestation and causing severe damage to the environment and livelihoods of local residents.

Daul Jang, advocacy specialist at Greenpeace East Asia's Seoul office, called Hyundai's announcement "a very meaningful decision by a global corporation to be part of the solution for the destructive environmental problem in the Amazon."

Jang told UPI that the environmental group hopes Hyundai's decisions will spur other equipment manufacturers to follow suit, but added that solving the issue will require a wide-ranging collaborative effort.

"To fundamentally eradicate illegal gold mining in the Amazon, we need close cooperation among the Brazilian government and the manufacturers and sellers of the heavy machinery together with civil society and Indigenous people," he said.

Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva has emphasized his support for the country's Indigenous people, in stark contrast to his right-wing, populist predecessor Jair Bolsonaro, who hobbled environmental protections and pushed to legalize mining in protected areas of the Amazon rainforest.

In January 2023, Lula visited Yanomami territory and declared a medical emergency after hundreds of children had died from malnutrition.

He called the treatment of the Yanomami a "genocide" by Bolsonaro, under whose watch the number of illegal miners on their protected lands swelled to 20,000. In addition to deforestation, gold mining operations have led to toxic mercury runoff that has poisoned rivers and food supplies.

Greenpeace and other watchdog groups are calling for additional measures to curb illegal mining with excavators, such as GPS tracking and remote monitoring technology used in coordination with strengthened government regulations and enforcement.

"There is clear political will with the new [Lula] government, and one of the major manufacturers is ready to cooperate," Jang said. "So we hope this cooperation will come up with the best solution."

HD Hyundai did not respond to UPI's request for additional comment as of press time.

Sudan crisis puts Chad under pressure

Isaac Kaledzi | Eric Topona | Blaise Dariustone | Wendy Bashi

DW
April 27, 2023

Chad is hosting more than 1 million people forced to leave their homes, including nearly 400,000 Sudanese refugees. Chad fears the conflict between rival army generals will pile more pressure on its limited resources.

Antoine, a Congolese man who has been living in Sudan for around 20 years, is desperate to flee the country amid heavy fighting. His closest safe destination is neighboring Chad.

He told DW that living conditions have worsened since the start of clashes between Rapid Support Forces (RSF) led by General Mohammed Hamdane Daglo and the national army of General Abdel Fattah al-Burhane.

Antoine explained that they haven't had any food to eat nor electricity to use for several days.

The RSF's rear base is over 1,000 kilometers (around 620 miles) away, close to Sudan's border with Chad.

The UN has warned that the violence could force as many as 270,000 people to seek refuge in neighboring South Sudan and Chad

Image: MAHAMAT RAMADANE/REUTERS

At risk

Those waiting to cross over into Chad say they live under the threat of the bombings which target a camp close to the paramilitaries.

"There are smells because there are the bodies of people who died and so far, have not been collected," Antoine said.

"We risk having cholera. We sleep on the ground and some sleep-in containers. You know that when it is hot, the container also heats up, and you can resist and stay inside. There is even snakes at this place where we sleep. There are lots of mosquitoes, too."

A fragile cease-fire — which has been in place since Tuesday — has allowed many Sudanese and other foreign nationals to flee for safety, and many of them went to Chad.

Bijou, a national of another African country, is hoping to travel to Chad or get evacuated to another country.

"We suffer a lot here," Bijou said. "Fortunately, the soldiers of Daglo give us some bread and food. Since the war began, we have gone several days without eating."

Chad already hosts more than 1 million forcibly displaced people, including nearly 400,000 Sudanese refugees in the east of the country

MAHAMAT RAMADANE/REUTERS

Threat to Chad's security

Chadian authorities are concerned that the ongoing clashes in Sudan would compromise the security and humanitarian situation within their own territory as thousands of people — mostly women and children — continue to seek refuge.

Chad's defense minister, Daoud Yaya Brahim, told DW that he was worried about the flow of refugees.

"We have over 400,000 Sudanese refugees who have been with us since 2003," Brahim said. "Chad will suffer [in terms of] security," he said. "Many measures and arrangements have been made to secure our border."

Officials of the Economic and Social Development Agency (ADES), a Chadian humanitarian NGO, told DW that Chad could host more than 100,000 refugees very soon due to the fighting.

The worsening crisis in Sudan will further put pressure on Chadian authorities, according to the United Nations

MAHAMAT RAMADANE/REUTERS

"Our teams counted about 20,000 people. It continues for example on the Khartoum side, also in the Nyala area. And in our humanitarian contingency plan we really expect a 100,000 of people who may cross the border to Chad,'' Abdelhakim Tahir, the director of ADES said.

Limited support for refugees

The World Food Program (WFP) has warned that the supply of food for refugees in Chad would be halved from next month due to a lack of financial support.

That means Antoine and Bijou may even struggle to cope with conditions should they cross over to Chad.

Tahir has warned of worsening humanitarian situation in Chad for refugees if the international community doesn't mobilize enough aid on time.

"It is a humanitarian catastrophe if the World Food Program has no resources. WFP is even the partner that mobilizes resources to address the food needs of refugees. But already for former refugees they have no resources and for the current influx there are not really resources," he said.

Who are the key international players in the Sudan conflict?  03:12

It is estimated that the WFP urgently needs just over $142 million over the next six months to sustain its program for refugees as well as provide vital food assistance to communities affected by the crisis in Sudan.

"Chad is under financed. The international community really must mobilize. We really fear the worst. Organizations will not be able to cope with this influx of Sudanese refugees," Tahir told DW.

Chad has been in political turmoil since the death of former President Idriss Deby Itno in 2021. Fresh elections have been delayed until October 2024 and at least 1 million people are affected by devastating flooding, which all add to the woes of the impoverished Central African nation.

Edited by: Keith Walker

Austria: World's oldest newspaper to cease print publication


Zac Crellin
DW

April 27, 2023

The newspaper old enough to have reported on a young Mozart is set to cease its print edition after a shake-up of Austrian media laws. The move comes despite protests by staff and readers.

The print edition of Austrian newspaper the Wiener Zeitung, which has been published since 1703, will cease to exist after a decision made by Austria's parliament on Thursday.

The Austrian parliament adopted the law that puts an end to the current form of the daily in a majority vote.

The publication has reported on everything from a young Mozart to the effective abdication of the last Habsburg emperor in its 320-year history, claiming to be the oldest surviving daily newspaper in the world.

It has been owned by the Austrian government since 1857 and serves an an official gazette, with advertisements for government job openings and other official notices appearing in the newspaper by law.

This became its main source of revenue, and allowed the newspaper to continue its journalistic mission of reporting the news.

'End by law'

On Thursday, Austria's parliament passed a law that would no longer require it and other companies to take out advertisements in the print edition of the paper.

"It is not the role of the republic to run and finance a daily newspaper," Austria's conservative Chancellor Sebastian Kurz said in 2021 when the changes were first floated.

The new media regulations also alter the Wiener Zeitung's purpose from a daily newspaper to become a "training and further education medium."

In an article published on the day of the vote titled "End by law," the newspaper said this new description is an unclear mandate that will gut its capacity to produce journalism.

Staff and readers have protested against the changes in Vienna

Image: Georg Hochmuth/APA/picturedesk/picture alliance

Staff and readers have staged several protests outside the Federal Assembly in Vienna to protest the planned shuttering of the daily print edition.

Although the online edition and a monthly print edition will be produced going forward, the newspaper's deputy editor-in-chief Thomas Seifert said the government's decision was about more than just "digital or paper."

He told fellow Austrian daily Die Presse what is at stake is "preserving the spirit of the Wiener Zeitung."

Edited by: Wesley Dockery

HUMAN SACRIFICE

Second Kenyan pastor accused of mass killing of followers

Ezekiel Odero arrested and more than 100 people evacuated from church, days after discovery of bodies linked to another church

Agence France-Presse in Nairobi

Thu 27 Apr 2023 

Kenya said on Thursday that one of the country’s highest-profile pastors would face charges over the “mass killing” of his followers, just days after the discovery of dozens of bodies in mass graves linked to another church.

Ezekiel Odero, the head of the New Life Prayer Centre and Church, “has been arrested and is being processed to face criminal charges related to the mass killing of his followers,” the country’s interior minister, Kithure Kindiki, said in a statement.

“The said church has been shut down. The over 103 people who were holed up at the premises have been evacuated and will be required to record statements,” he added.

Odero’s arrest coincides with an investigation into Paul Mackenzie Nthenge, a cult leader accused of the deaths of more than 100 followers in a forest near the coastal town of Malindi.

Police have not linked the two cases, and the authorities have not provided further details about the allegations against Odero or his church, which is headquartered in Malindi.

Dressed in his signature all-white garb and clutching a Bible, the fisher-turned-preacher smiled for the cameras as he was transferred from Malindi to police headquarters in the port city of Mombasa for questioning.

A wealthy televangelist who has amassed a huge following – one of his churches south of Malindi can seat 40,000 people and his YouTube channel has half a million subscribers – Odero has described himself as “God’s chosen one”.

At his mega-rallies attended by tens of thousands of devotees, the charismatic preacher sells vials of “holy” water and scraps of cloth for 100 shillings (£0.60) he claims heal all manner of illnesses, including HIV.

Though casting himself as an ordinary man without political connections, Odero has shared the pulpit with prominent figures, including the wife of the deputy president, Rigathi Gachagua, in December in Nairobi.

The government had promised a crackdown on fringe religious groups after dozens of bodies were unearthed during a raid on a forested property near Malindi belonging to Nthenge.

The former taxi driver is accused of telling followers of his Good News International Church that starvation offered a path to God.

The gruesome case has deeply shocked the majority Christian nation.

Some of his followers were found alive but died en route to hospital, while others refused to eat or accept medical attention.

More than half the bodies exhumed over the past week from mass graves in Shakahola forest were of children, and police fear the death toll could rise as their search widens.

Another five bodies were exhumed on Thursday, taking to 103 the total number of dead linked to the cult, a police source said.

At least 22 people have been arrested and 39 rescued.

President William Ruto likened the cult leader to a terrorist and vowed the harshest possible punishment for him and anyone else extolling “weird, unacceptable ideology” in the east African country.

But past efforts to regulate the more than 4,000 churches registered in Kenya have failed, despite headline-grabbing incidents of cults and rogue pastors involved in serious crime.

Proposed measures to weed out bad actors – such as requiring pastors to be formally trained in theology – have been fiercely opposed and cast as violations of the constitutional guarantee for the division of church and state.

In the wake of what is being called the “Shakahola forest massacre”, questions are being raised about how Nthenge was able to continue preaching despite attracting police attention six years ago.

He was arrested in 2017 on charges of “radicalisation” after urging families not to send their children to school, saying education was not recognised by the Bible.

Nthenge was arrested again last month, according to local media, after two children starved to death in the custody of their parents. He was released on bail but surrendered to police.

Nthenge and several other suspects are due to appear in court on 2 May.

Finland's election winner seeks coalition with far-right

DW

April 27, 2023

Finland's conservative leader Petteri Orpo said he plans to form an alliance with the far-right Finns Party, following his win in the country's parliamentary election.

Finland's conservative National Coalition Party, winner of this year's general election, announced on Thursday that it hopes to form a coalition government with the anti-immigration Finns Party and two other groups — the Swedish People's Party and the Christian Democrats.

The four parties will fall under the leadership of Petteri Orpo, the leader of the National Coalition Party, who is expected to replace current left-wing prime minister Sanna Marin.

"We really have big challenges ahead, we have to make difficult decisions, we have to make savings, we have to make reforms but I think they can be done and with this combination I think we can do it," said Orpo in a news conference.

What follows now?

If the negotiations between the four parties are successful, the coalition will secure a majority of 108 seats in parliament out of 200. Orpo's National Coalition Party won 48 seats in the April parliamentary election, and the Finns were a runner-up with 46 seats.

Finland's parliamentary election took place soon before the country became NATO's 31st member, following Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

The negotiations between the four parties are expected to be difficult.

Orpo must reach a consensus with the nationalist Finns Party, whose leader Riikka Purra has previously said that her party will aim to reduce "harmful" immigration from developing countries outside Europe.

While Orpo is willing to review asylum policies, he has said he wants to continue welcoming skilled workers to Finland.

"There are of course differences between the parties. But following (preliminary) negotiations we collectively feel that the issues can be resolved," said Orpo.

vh/wd (AFP, Reuters)

US climate activists smear paint on Degas sculpture enclosure

AFP
Thu, April 27, 2023 


Climate activists attacked a famous Degas sculpture in a Washington museum Thursday, smearing its Plexiglas enclosure with paint.

The French artist's wax sculpture of 'La petite danseuse de quatorze ans' was attacked with stripes of red and black paint, the National Gallery of Art reported.

The incident was one of the first of its kind in North America.

The gallery said in a statement to AFP that the work "of inestimable value" was removed from the exhibition halls to assess possible damage.

"We categorically denounce this physical attack on one of our works of art," the gallery said, adding that the FBI was taking part in the investigation.

Activists said the assault is about global warming.

"We need our leaders to take serious action to tell the truth about what is happening to the climate," says an activist in her 50s sitting at the foot of the small statue, her hands covered in the red paint used on the glass and the base of the work of Edgar Degas, in a video published by The Washington Post.

"Today, through nonviolent rebellion, we temporarily defiled a work of art to evoke the very real children whose suffering is certain if deadly fossil fuel companies continue to mine coal, oil and gas from the soil", the group which claimed the action, which called itself Declare Emergency, wrote on Instagram.

It urged President Joe Biden to declare a state of climate emergency.

The group is unknown to the general public. It said one of its activists was detained but released by the authorities shortly afterward.

In the fall of 2022, mainly in Europe, environmental activists stepped up actions targeting works of art to seek more public awareness about global warming.

For example, they glued their hands to a painting by Goya in Madrid, threw tomato soup on Van Gogh's "Sunflowers" in London and smeared mashed potatoes on a masterpiece by Claude Monet in Potsdam, near Berlin.

ube/mdl/dw

For All Its Flaws, Don't 'Turn Back On UN,' Says Ukraine Envoy

By Amélie BOTTOLLIER-DEPOIS

April 27, 2023

Ukraine's envoy to the United Nations Sergiy Kyslytsya speaks at a UN Security Council meeting on February 6, 2023

TIMOTHY A. CLARY

The United Nations is deeply flawed but it has proven effective in condemning Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the embattled nation's UN envoy told AFP on Thursday.

Ukrainian Ambassador Sergiy Kyslytsya said there may be no other country in the world where citizens pay such heed to debates at the UN General Assembly or Security Council about their nation.

"The United Nations is clearly not perfect," he said, recalling decisions even dating back to its founding in 1945.

"We should not really have illusions about the United Nations. That's true. On the other hand, do we have an alternative to the United Nations? No," Kyslytsya said.

The envoy cited the many resolutions in the General Assembly calling for Russia to withdraw its troops from Ukraine. The last vote, near the February anniversary of the invasion, saw 141 nations vote in favor, seven against and 32 abstaining.

"It was a very serious blow against Russia, that was already spreading this narrative that the world (was) tired, that the world lost interest in that war," he said.

Even with such achievements in his nation's favor, Kyslytsya offered an evaluation of UN shortcomings and said he remains optimistic.

"The easiest way, but the most irresponsible way, is to turn our back on the United Nations," he insisted, describing the body as "a bouquet of different cultures, traditions (and) political systems" that must work together.

"The General Assembly and its membership is a photo of the world as it is... We might not like it, but that's the world. And if France or Ukraine... want to improve it, you can't use the Photoshop, you have to work directly with every single country and with groups of countries. It's very difficult."

Since the Russian invasion in February 2022, Ukraine and its allies have organized the adoption by the General Assembly of several resolutions condemning Moscow.

And Ukrainians follow closely debates at the UN whenever envoys discuss the Russian invasion.

"I don't think that there is any other country around the world currently, that would so carefully listen to what is said either in the General Assembly or in the Security Council meetings," he said.


Ukrainian Ambassador to the UN Sergiy Kyslytsya steps into the Security Council chambersYuki IWAMURA

Russia has one of five permanent seats on the UN Security Council, holding veto power and leaving the 15-seat council paralyzed on Ukraine issues. Still, much of the work of the UN goes on apace, Kyslytsya said, noting the importance of other UN agencies such as the High Commissioner for Refugees.

However, the fact that Russia holds the rotating presidency of the Council for a month, until Sunday, has dealt "a serious blow" to the image of the UN, he lamented, citing the "total moral corruption" of a system that allows Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov to chair a meeting on the defense of the principles of the UN charter.

"I was disgusted, but I got used to (being) disgusted," Kyslytsya said. "I mean, this city is full of hypocrisy. The United Nations is a very toxic place. It's not a corner of the paradise."

But the envoy said that "even if the Security Council is so deeply discredited... it doesn't mean that the entire organization failed."

He hailed "the success of the Secretary General," Antonio Guterres, in reaching an agreement on the export of Ukrainian grain via the Black Sea.

He called Guterres a UN chief with "very high moral standards and dedication."

As for the creation of a special tribunal to judge those responsible for the Russian aggression, the question of whether this will be done through the UN or not remains open. Until a few months ago, Ukraine argued for a General Assembly resolution.

Today "discussions are continuing," noted the ambassador.


"Whether we go to the General Assembly or whether we find other way, that is an important question. But that's not the essence. The essence is how (Russia) is held to account for the crime of aggression."

However the matter moves forward, "we should never allow it to fail."

© Agence France-Presse

Dance gets world's first heavy metal ballet

AFP
Fri, April 28, 2023 

In a rehearsal studio in central England, dancers are getting to grips with new, heavy metal-inspired ballet steps. Moving gracefully in unison, they team pirouettes with air guitar, leaps with head banging.

Welcome to "Black Sabbath -- The Ballet", the brainchild of Cuban dance superstar Carlos Acosta, artistic director of the Birmingham Royal Ballet.

Determined to celebrate the cultural treasures of the UK's second city since his arrival in 2020, Acosta took his idea to Black Sabbath co-founder and guitarist Tony Iommi, who gave it his blessing along with the group's original vocalist Ozzy Osbourne.

"I was fascinated with the idea. I thought 'How are they going to do that'," Iommi, 75, told AFP Thursday in Birmingham.

"I just couldn't imagine how they'd do ballet to Black Sabbath and then I thought well maybe they're going to use the... softer tracks, but no they went for 'Black Sabbath', 'War Pigs', 'Iron Man'," he said.

"I think I was just really intrigued."

The full-length, three-act ballet opens in Birmingham, the pioneering group's home city, in September before going on tour. Rehearsals have just begun.

- Bat incident -

According to writer Richard Thomas, the ballet is the "rags-to-riches story" of four young men who went from the "factory floor to one of the most successful bands in rock history", although he stressed it would not be a documentary set to music and dance.

The legendary group's original line-up was Osbourne, Iommi, bassist Geezer Butler and drummer Bill Ward.

They were instrumental in creating heavy metal in the early 1970s with dark and high-volume guitars coupled with a keen interest in the occult.

"It's very simple. It's like Black Sabbath meets the Birmingham Royal Ballet," Thomas said.

There would, however, be use of archive interviews and also some famous Black Sabbath stories such as how Iommi lost the tips of two fingers in an industrial accident on his last day working at a sheet metal factory.

Also making an appearance will be the tale of the "Stonehenge" set that had to be dumped after a measurements mix-up meant it was so big it wouldn't fit into auditoriums.

And he said there might "possibly be a brief mention of the bat incident", in which Osbourne thought a fan had thrown a rubber bat onstage only to discover -- after he took a bite -- that it was real.

For Acosta, 39, there had been an immediate rapport with Iommi after he first approached him with the project.

"I didn't know the man (or) how we were going to hit it off, but obviously we both come from the same background in terms of working-class and poor families... and the chemistry was instant," he said.

The former star dancer said he came to the music of Black Sabbath late due to growing up in Cuba.

- 'Stratospheric' -

"I grew up in the 1980s, I wanted to be Michael Jackson. I didn't know anything about Black Sabbath," he said, adding that he only discovered the group through a friend in the late 1990s.

"This was the music of those who are marginalised so I found it very interesting."

Musically, composer Chris Austin said it had been difficult to know where to start as the Black Sabbath back catalogue was so huge.

But he said once they narrowed it down it had been easy to be inspired by the music's "glorious irregularity" and "enormous shifts of tempo", combined with Osbourne's early "stratospheric" vocals.

The show will be a treat for fans after the group, including three of the original members, ended their last-ever tour with a final concert in Birmingham in 2017.

Iommi said he was as interested as everyone else to discover how the ballet would turn out, but that he had been confident in Acosta and his team from the start.

"I know from our fans that there is a lot of excitement to come to the show," he said, adding that he expected people would be particularly keen to join in.

"I think it will be great."

har/leg