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US makes offer to bring home jailed Americans Paul Whelan and Evan Gershkovich. Russia rejected it

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:47:00 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Biden administration has made a new and significant offer aimed at securing the release of American detainees Paul Whelan and Evan Gershkovich, but Russia has rejected the offer, the State Department said Tuesday.Spokesman Matthew Miller did not reveal the details of the offer nor why Russia had turned it down, but the revelation of the proposal was a fresh indication that Washington is continuing to try to negotiate with Moscow to get both men home.“This was a new proposal, in recent weeks. It was a significant proposal,” Miller said. “And it was rejected by the Russians but it does not, it will not deter us from continuing to do everything we can to try and bring both of them home.”The U.S. government has declared both Whelan and Gershkovich to be wrongfully detained.Whelan, a corporate security executive from Michigan, has been jailed in Russia since his December 2018 arrest on espionage-related charges that both he and the U.S. government dispute. He was se...

Paraguay rounds up ex-military leaders in arms smuggling sting carried out with Brazil

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:47:00 GMT

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (AP) — Several former top military officials in Paraguay have been arrested as part of a cross-border law enforcement operation with Brazil to disband an arms smuggling ring that brought firearms from Europe to South America, officials said Tuesday.The U.S. Department of Homeland Security was also involved in the year-long investigation, according to Paraguay authorities.“The weapons were imported from Europe to Paraguay, where they were defaced and resold to intermediary groups operating on the Brazil-Paraguay border, ultimately reaching major criminal factions in Brazil,” Brazilian federal police said in a statement.Close to 43,000 pieces of such weapons — worth around $243 million — were imported to Paraguay over the past three years under the scheme, Brazilian authorities said.At least 13 people have been detained in Paraguay, including the former head of Paraguay’s office in charge of controlling the imports and distribution of firearms known as Dimabel,...

The Gaza Strip: Tiny, cramped and as densely populated as London

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:47:00 GMT

The war between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip has seen fierce Israeli bombardment that has flattened broad swaths of the territory. Thousands have been killed and hundreds of thousands have been displaced. And all that is happening in a tiny, densely populated coastal enclave.Gaza is tucked between Israel, Egypt and the Mediterranean Sea. The strip is 25 miles (40 kilometers) long by some 7 miles (11 kilometers) wide. It has a population of 2.3 million people living on an area of 139 square miles (360 square kilometers), according to the CIA Factbook. That’s about the same land size as Detroit, Michigan, a city that has a population of 620,000, according to the United States Census Bureau. It’s about twice the size of Washington, D.C and 3 1/2 times the size of Paris.Gaza has a population density of about 14,000 people per square mile (5,500 per square kilometer). That’s about the same as London, a city brimming with high-rise buildings, but also many parks. Gaza has few open s...

Jonathan Majors’ accuser said actor’s ‘violent temper’ left her fearful before alleged assault

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:47:00 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — Jonathan Majors’ former girlfriend told a Manhattan jury that the actor was prone to fits of rage that escalated in the months leading up to his arrest for allegedly attacking her in the backseat of a car last spring.During hours of tearful testimony on Tuesday, Grace Jabbari described Majors as a controlling, manipulative partner who hurled household objects at the wall, tried to control her socially, and repeatedly threatened to take his own life in the aftermath of their fights.“It felt like I was walking around on eggshells,” said Jabbari, a 30-year-old professional dancer from the United Kingdom. “I had to be perfect.”Majors avoided eye contact with Jabbari during the morning testimony, scribbling notes to his lawyer or thumbing through his gold-leafed bible as she recounted his struggle to contain his “violent temper.” The testimony came on the second day of the trial against Majors, a rising Hollywood film actor whose portrayal of the comic book supervillain “...

Health Canada authorizes updated Novavax COVID-19 vaccine targeting XBB variant

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:47:00 GMT

OTTAWA — Health Canada has authorized an updated COVID-19 vaccine from Novavax that targets the XBB.1.5 variant.The new vaccine is called Nuvaxovid and is approved for people 12 years of age and over.Nuvaxovid is a protein subunit vaccine, meaning it contains harmless pieces of virus.The other two XBB vaccines currently authorized in Canada are mRNA vaccines, manufactured by Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna.The mRNA options remain the only XBB vaccines approved for children under 12.The National Advisory Committee on Immunization recommends that everyone six months of age and older get the XBB.1.5 vaccine if it has been six months or longer since their last COVID-19 vaccination or COVID-19 infection.

Ford government passes motion to bypass committee hearings on new Ontario Place legislation

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:47:00 GMT

Doug Ford’s Progressive Conservative government has passed a motion to bypass debate and public hearings for a bill to redevelop Ontario Place.The legislation allows the province to take control of two Toronto highways, exempts Ontario Place land from a full environmental assessment and gives the infrastructure minister the power to issue minister zoning orders that overrides local laws.The motion that passed allows the government to skip committee hearings where the public can provide input, and skips debate on the third and final reading of a bill.The province has said it must reach certain milestones on the Ontario Place redevelopment set out in a contract with private companies and one of those deadlines is approaching at the end of the year. Related: Bypassing public hearings, debate on Ontario Place bill is undemocratic: opposition Advocates say Ontario Place deal between province, Toronto falls short Ford government says moving s...

Hamas officials join Nelson Mandela’s family at ceremony marking 10th anniversary of his death

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:47:00 GMT

CAPE TOWN, South Africa (AP) — Hamas officials joined members of Nelson Mandela’s family in laying wreaths at a statue of the statesman and Nobel Peace Prize winner in South Africa on Tuesday to mark the 10th anniversary of his death.Former Hamas government minister Basem Naim is in South Africa as part of a delegation and joined Mandela’s grandson, Mandla Mandela, and others at the ceremony at the Union Buildings in Pretoria, the seat of the South African government.South Africa has been vocal in its support of the Palestinian cause for years and has strongly criticized Israel over its response to the Oct. 7 attacks by Hamas. South Africa has previously compared Israel’s actions in Gaza to its own past apartheid system of racial oppression.South Africa’s ruling African National Congress party, which Nelson Mandela once led, voted in favor of a motion in Parliament last month to close the Israeli Embassy in South Africa and cut diplomatic ties because of the ...

Texas high school sends Black student back to in-school suspension over his locs hairstyle

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:47:00 GMT

A Texas high school sent a Black student back to in-school suspension Tuesday for refusing to change his hairstyle, renewing a monthslong standoff over a dress code policy the teen’s family calls discriminatory. The student, Darryl George, was suspended for 13 days because his hair is out of compliance when let down, according to a disciplinary notice issued by Barbers Hill High School in Mont Belvieu, Texas. It was his first day back at the school after spending a month at an off-site disciplinary program. George, 18, already has spent more than 80% of his junior year outside of his regular classroom.He was first pulled from the classroom at the Houston-area school in August after school officials said his braided locs fell below his eyebrows and ear lobes and violated the district’s dress code. His family argues the punishment violates the CROWN Act, which became law in Texas in September and is intended to prohibit race-based hair discrimination. The school says the CROWN A...

Police identify woman found dead in Bowmanville

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:47:00 GMT

Durham Regional Police have identified a woman whose body was discovered in a wooded area in Bowmanville last week.The human remains were found by police on Tuesday, Nov. 28, near Simpson Avenue and Baseline Road. Officers were in the area for an unrelated matter when the body was discovered.Investigators identified the woman as 40-year-old Ericka Saunders. While police say her death is not being considered suspicious at this time, officers are still hoping to speak with anyone who may have information related to this case.

Atmospheric river brings heavy rain, flooding and warm winter temperatures to the Pacific Northwest

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:47:00 GMT

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — An atmospheric river has brought heavy rain, flooding and warm winter temperatures to the Pacific Northwest, closing roadways and schools as it shattered daily rainfall and temperature records in Washington state.The National Weather Service on Tuesday issued flood warnings in parts of western Washington, including in areas north and east of Seattle and across a large swath of the Olympic Peninsula.Daily rainfall records were broken in Seattle on Monday after the city received 1.5 inches of rain, said Kirby Cook, science and operations officer at the National Weather Service’s office in Seattle. “We’ll continue to see significant impacts, especially with river crests and rises on area rivers” through Wednesday morning, Cook said Tuesday.On the peninsula, the small town of Forks saw its rainfall record for Dec. 4 more than double after it received about 3.8 inches of rain, the National Weather Service said. By early Tuesday morning, it had recorded 4.7 inches of...