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British PM urges NIreland politicians to go back to work

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:24:48 GMT

LONDON (AP) — U.K. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak praised the bravery of political leaders who struck the Good Friday peace accord 25 years ago Monday, as he urged Northern Ireland’s current politicians to return to work.While the peace deal largely brought an end to 30 years of hostilities, the Northern Ireland Assembly has been in limbo for more than a year since the main unionist party pulled out of the government to protest new post-Brexit trade rules for Northern Ireland. Sunak discussed the importance of compromise in reaching the April 10, 1998 peace deal and called for redoubling efforts toward economic opportunity, prosperity, and stability. “It is a promise we must continue to fulfill,” he said. “So we must get on with the business of governance.”Sunak is set to greet U.S. President Joe Biden when he arrives Tuesday night in Belfast for a four-day visit to Northern Ireland and Ireland. The White House said Biden would mark the progress since the agreement was struck and unders...

A list of recent high-profile shootings in the US

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:24:48 GMT

The latest high-profile shooting in the United States happened Monday in Louisville, Kentucky, when at least four people were killed at a downtown bank. The shooting is the 15th mass killing, in which four or more people died other than the perpetrator, in the country this year.Other notable episodes of gun violence in the past year: NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE Three students and three adults were killed inside The Covenant School in Nashville on March 27. The suspect, a former student, was killed by police. HALF MOON BAY, CALIFORNIA A farmworker killed seven people in back-to-back shootings in a case of workplace violence at two Northern California mushroom farms on Jan. 23. A suspect is facing charges. MONTEREY PARK, CALIFORNIA A 72-year-old man killed 11 and wounded nine in a shooting at a Lunar New Year dance in Monterey Park on Jan. 21. The suspect later died of an apparent self-inflicted gunshot woun...

Teck ramps up rhetoric against Glencore offer, pushes own plan to spilt company

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:24:48 GMT

VANCOUVER — Teck Resources Ltd. has ramped up its rhetoric against a unsolicited takeover bid by Swiss mining giant Glencore while arguing for its own restructuring plan.Glencore’s proposal is a “non-starter for Teck,” said chief executive Jonathan Price on a conference call Monday.“This is not just about price. We also see serious structural flaws in the proposal that Glencore has put forward, and we believe that that proposal, looked at as a whole, would destroy value for Teck shareholders and that it has significant execution risk.”Glencore came out last week with a proposed all-share merger that offered a 20 per cent premium to B class shares and would leave Teck investors holding about a quarter of the combined company. Glencore said it planned to split up the combined company into two divisions, with one focused more on metals and another on coal. The proposition is similar to Teck’s existing plan to split along the same lines, which goes to a vot...

Empty tank cars derail in Texas rail yard, no injuries

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:24:48 GMT

KENDLETON, Texas (AP) — Three empty tank cars derailed but remained upright in a Southeast Texas rail yard on Monday, the train’s owner said, and no one was hurt.A locomotive leaked fuel but it was contained, Kansas City Southern spokesperson C. Doniele Carlson said in a statement.The derailment took place at around 7 a.m. in Kendleton, Texas, some 50 miles (80 kilometers) southwest of Houston, Carlson said.“No injuries were reported and there is no track damage,” she said. The impacted rail line was expected to reopen later Monday morning.Officials with the Fort Bend County Sheriff’s Office said they did not respond to the incident because it was contained to the rail yard.The cause of the derailment is under investigation, Carlson said. Federal regulators and members of Congress are urging railroads to do more to prevent derailments after recent fiery wrecks involving hazardous chemicals in Ohio and Minnesota prompted evacuations.The Associated Press

Bombs targeting Pakistani police in SW kill 4, wound 22

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:24:48 GMT

QUETTA, Pakistan (AP) — Two roadside bombs hours apart targeted police vehicles in volatile southwestern Pakistan on Monday killing at least four people and wounding 22, mostly civilian pedestrians, a government spokesperson said.The first attack in Quetta, the capital of Baluchistan province, killed two police officers and two civilians. Hours later, another bomb in the city went off near a police vehicle, wounding four people, police said.In a statement, the outlawed Baluchistan Liberation Army claimed responsibility for the first attack. The BLA, which was designated a terrorist group by the United States in 2019, said its fighters targeted the vehicle of a police officer who was behind the arrest of members of the group. Although such attacks are common, t he Pakistani Taliban have also stepped up assaults on troops and police across Pakistan since November, when they ended a monthslong cease-fire with the government.Pakistan has been battling an insurgency in Baluchistan for mo...

The anime hit ‘Suzume’ and Shinkai’s cinema of cataclysm

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:24:48 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — Makoto Shinkai was never the same filmmaker after the 2011 earthquake stuck Japan. When the tsunami and quake ravaged the Tōhoku region of northern Japan and prompted a nuclear meltdown, Shinkai, a now 50-year-old director and animator of some of the most popular anime features in the world, could feel his sense of storytelling crumbling.“The shock to me was that the daily life that we had become accustomed to in Japan can suddenly be severed without any warning whatsoever,” says Shinkai. “I had this odd, foreboding feeling that that could happen again and again. I began to think about how I wanted to tell stories within this new reality.”The three blockbusters that have followed by Shinkai — “Your Name,”“Weathering With You” and the new release “Suzume” — have each tethered hugely emotional tales to ecological disaster. In “Your Name,” a meteor threatens to demolish a village, an event that dovetails with a body-switching romance. In “Weathering With You,” a runaway...

Ottawa to negotiate schedule for new icebreakers as existing fleet nears end of life

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:24:48 GMT

OTTAWA — The federal government says it doesn’t know when Quebec shipyard Chantier Davie will deliver a fleet of new icebreakers to the Canadian Coast Guard.Officials say the schedule will depend on negotiations with the shipyard, which was formally added to Ottawa’s multibillion-dollar shipbuilding strategy last week.There are long-standing concerns about the Coast Guard’s existing icebreakers and whether replacements will arrive in time.Auditor General Karen Hogan noted in a report last year that the fleet is already on average more than 40 years old, increasingly prone to breakdowns and expensive to maintain.Hogan concluded there was little room for delays if Ottawa wants to maintain its current icebreaking capabilities, which are critical for keeping Canada’s waterways open to trade and resupplying northern communities.University of Calgary professor Rob Huebert says the government’s decision to buy three second-hand icebreakers from Davie will help...

Commanders settle with Washington, D.C., on ticket deposits

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:24:48 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Washington Commanders have settled a lawsuit with the District of Columbia attorney general’s office over fans’ season-ticket deposit money.Attorney general Brian L. Schwalb on Monday announced the agreement that returns $200,000 to fans and pay $425,000 to the district to resolve allegations related to the deposits. Predecessor Karl A. Racine filed the consumer protection lawsuit late last year before leaving office, and Schwalb picked up the case.The district’s investigation showed the team deceptively kept fans’ deposits for years after ticket contracts expired, improperly used that money and in some cases made it difficult to reclaim the money.“Rather than being transparent and upfront in their ticket sale practices, the Commanders unlawfully took advantage of their fan base, holding on to security deposits instead of returning them,” Schwalb said in a statement. “Under this settlement agreement, our office will maintain strict oversight over th...

RCMP say Edmonton-area officer dies from injuries following crash

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:24:48 GMT

SHERWOOD PARK, Alta. — Alberta RCMP say an officer has died after being injured in a crash.They say the officer is a member of the Strathcona County detachment, which is just east of Edmonton.The crash happened at 2 a.m., but no other details have been provided.RCMP have scheduled a news conference for later today in Sherwood Park.Last month, two Edmonton police officers were shot and killed while responding to a family dispute.This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 10, 2023The Canadian Press

Chicago announces street closures for NASCAR races

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:24:48 GMT

CHICAGO — One of the biggest questions that many in Chicago have ahead of the inaugural NASCAR street race was the impact it would have on commuting in the Loop and surrounding areas. The city's Office of Emergency Management and Communications provided some clarity on that on Monday.That's when they announced the traffic plan, including multiple closures and restrictions, for the event that will feature a stock car race on both Saturday, July 1 and Sunday, July 2.Here are key dates in June as the streets are prepared for NASCAR weekend.Friday, June 2 - Parking restrictions along Columbus Dr. between Jackson Dr. and Balbo Dr.Saturday, June 10 - Ida B. Wells Dr. will close east of Michigan Ave. at 12:01 a.m. as construction begins on the main viewing areas.Saturday, June 17 to Sunday, June 25 - Temporary closures for track wall installation.Monday, June 19 - Balbo Dr. from Michigan Ave. to DuSable Lake Shore Drive will close at 6 a.mHere are some of the major closers that will start ...