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Hong Kong court puts off Chinese developer Evergrande’s hearing on its debt restructuring to January

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 01:12:42 GMT

HONG KONG (AP) — A Hong Kong court postponed until Jan. 29 a court hearing scheduled for Monday on troubled Chinese property developer Evergrande’s winding-up petition. Evergrande is trying to win support from its creditors for a plan to restructure more than $300 billion in debt to stave off liquidation. The company’s lawyer told the court it was requesting an adjournment to “refine” its new debt restructuring plan.The Hong Kong High Court has postponed the hearing over Evergrande’s potential liquidation several times. Judge Linda Chan had said in October that Monday’s hearing would be the last before a decision is handed down. Evergrande could be ordered to liquidate if creditors reject its plan. The company, the world’s most indebted property developer, ran into trouble when Chinese regulators cracked down on excessive borrowing in the real estate sector.Last month, the company said Chinese police were investigating Evergrande’s chairman, Hui Ka Yan, for unspecified suspected cri...

Kennedy Center Honors fetes new inductees, including Queen Latifah, Billy Crystal and Dionne Warwick

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 01:12:42 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — The newest group of Kennedy Center honorees, including comedian Billy Crystal and actor Queen Latifah, were feted Sunday night at a star-studded event commemorating their lifetime achievement in arts and entertainment.Opera singer Renée Fleming, music star Barry Gibb and prolific hitmaker Dionne Warwick were also honored at the black-tie gala. Each received personalized tributes including appearances and performances that are typically kept secret from the honorees themselves.President Joe Biden welcomed the honorees to the White House before the event, saying the performing arts “reflect who we are as Americans and as human beings.”The honorees “have helped shape how we see ourselves, how we see each other and how we see our world,” said Biden who then introduced this year’s class with a set of glowing superlatives about their work.Biden and first lady Jill Biden then headed to the Kennedy Center to attend the festivities. The ceremony began with 2017 Kenned...

Interim coach Chris Tabor’s debut is more of the same for NFL-worst Panthers

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 01:12:42 GMT

TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Breakdowns at key times and missed opportunities doomed the Carolina Panthers in interim coach Chris Tabor’s debut.Carolina (1-11) scored late to pull within a field goal, but the Panthers didn’t get closer in Sunday’s 21-18 loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.The Panthers fired Frank Reich last Monday, 11 games into the coach’s first season with the team. Special teams coach Tabor was promoted to the top job for the rest of the season.“I was proud of our guys,” Tabor said. “We had an opportunity to win the game. We have to continue to work to get better. I know that’s a lot of big coach-speak. We’re going to keep going.”It was the second time in two seasons that Carolina played Tampa Bay shortly after Panthers owner David Tepper made an in-season coaching change. Matt Rhule was fired in October 2022, two weeks before the Panthers knocked off Tom Brady and the Bucs 21-3.The Panthers have the worst record in the league, but even if that continu...

Eagles QB Jalen Hurts evaluated for concussion vs 49ers, returns for loss

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 01:12:42 GMT

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Sure, Jalen Hurts says, he did have something to prove after he returned from a concussion check with the Eagles down 22 points.Hurts wasn’t interested in trying to convince the Eagles he was a tough guy. He wanted to show the Eagles still had a shot.“It was more so that the game was not over. We were just trying to keep fighting,” Hurts said.The Eagles kept up the fight, even as they ran out of time.Hurts did throw and rush for a score in Philadelphia’s 42-19 loss to San Francisco on Sunday night in a game that tightened the race for the top spot in the NFC.The Eagles (10-2) could have had a breezy path toward No. 1 with a win. The 49ers (9-3) are very much in the race and so are the Dallas Cowboys (9-3). The Cowboys will come off a 10-day break when they host the Eagles on Sunday — with a share of the NFC East and the top spot in the NFC at stake.The Eagles beat the Cowboys 28-23 last month at home.Last season’s NFL MVP runner-up, Hurts gave t...

Joe Flacco appeared to be the least of Cleveland’s problems in the Browns’ loss to the LA Rams

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 01:12:42 GMT

INGLEWOOD, Calif. (AP) — Joe Flacco stepped behind center for his first NFL game since January and immediately led the Browns on a long scoring drive, capped by a 24-yard touchdown pass that set off a celebration on Cleveland’s sideline.Sure, Cleveland’s 36-19 loss to the Los Angeles Rams on Sunday rarely went that smoothly again for the Browns (7-4).Yet the 38-year-old Flacco seemed to leave the Browns confident that the quarterback position is no longer their biggest area of weakness while they attempt to rebound this week from their first losing streak of the season.“I think Joe showed he can still play some football,” Cleveland left guard Joel Bitonio said. “I guess if you play 15 years, you don’t really get rattled.”Flacco began his 16th season in the NFL on Sunday, and the former Super Bowl MVP performed remarkably well, considering he only joined Cleveland’s practice squad two weeks ago and officially got this starting assignment Friday.Flacco went 23 of 44 ...

Denver neighbors fear vacant house fires with colder temperatures approaching

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 01:12:42 GMT

DENVER (KDVR) -- It's not just an eyesore, but it can also become a safety threat. Some neighbors living next to vacant homes in Denver are concerned about the potential dangers.“This place now that it's vacant looks like a place people go to shelter themselves," said Turpana Molina. He lives next door to a vacant home on the corner of York Street in Denver.“Now that it's winter, they are starting fires, which is a hazard if it's not, obviously, done properly," he said.A neighbor sent a video to FOX31 of that same property taken on November 28th. In the video, you can see a bright orange glow in the windows. Two days later embers can be seen coming from the chimney. 48 syringes, $6,300 worth of stolen bicycles found at Fort Collins homeless camp “It's concerning, if it can get out of hand by us being next door we can have damage to our place and of course everyone’s safety," Molina said.It's one of the 97 properties the City of Denver has on its Neglected and Derelict building lis...

Yankees player Anthony Rizzo hosts 12th Walk-Off for Cancer in Parkland

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 01:12:42 GMT

A South Florida organization founded by a Major League Baseball pro held a walk to help children living with cancer and the facilities that are treating them.The Anthony Rizzo Family Foundation held its 12th annual Walk-Off for Cancer in Parkland, Sunday morning.More than 1,000 people walked to support places like Joe DiMaggio Children’s Hospital.Anthony Rizzo, a first baseman for the New York Yankees, survived cancer when he was a teenager. He said he is dedicated to helping children who are battling the disease.“Whether it’s sending food or doing different events at the hospitals, donating toys and whatnot, presents,” he said, “but for the kids, I just hope that they know that there’s a lot of people supporting them at all times, and that when they’re feeling down, to try and lift them up any way we can”The event raised $1.3 million for pediatric cancer families and facilities.

Santa trades sleigh for fire truck, joins Coral Gables firefighters in neighborhood ride

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 01:12:42 GMT

A South Florida city welcomed a special out-of-town guest this weekend.Firefighters in Coral Gables convinced Santa Claus to trade in his sleigh for a fire truck on Sunday.The team rode around the city’s neighborhoods — handing out candy canes, waving to children and spreading plenty of holiday cheer.This is the 13th consecutive year Santa has taken this brief break from his North Pole duties to come hang out in the Gables.

Venezuelans approve a referendum to claim sovereignty over a swathe of neighboring Guyana

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 01:12:42 GMT

CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — Venezuelans on Sunday approved a referendum called by the government of President Nicolás Maduro to claim sovereignty over an oil- and mineral-rich piece of neighboring Guyana, the country’s electoral authority announced.Few voters could be seen at voting centers throughout the voting period for the five-question referendum, but the National Electoral Council claimed to have counted more than 10.5 million votes. The council, however, did not explain whether the number of votes was equivalent to a voter or if it was the sum of each individual answer.Venezuela has long argued the territory was stolen when the border was drawn more than a century ago. But Guyana considers the referendum a step toward annexation, and the vote has its residents on edge.Venezuelan voters were asked whether they support establishing a state in the disputed territory, known as Essequibo, granting citizenship to current and future area residents and rejecting the jurisdiction of the...

Transforming HIV prevention in Europe

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 01:12:42 GMT

This article is part of POLITICO Telescope: The New AIDS Epidemic, an ongoing exploration of the disease today.The world’s battle to end the HIV epidemic is being fought on two fronts. The first involves getting as many people as possible who are living with the virus diagnosed and rapidly onto antiretroviral medication. This reduces the virus inside their bodies to such a low level that it is undetectable and therefore cannot be passed to others. The approach is known as “undetectable = untransmittable” or “U=U*.”The second front is focused on protecting people from contracting the virus in the first place, even if they have been exposed to it — an approach known as pre-exposure prophylaxis, or PrEP. Taken as prescribed, PrEP makes a person’s body almost entirely resistant to HIV infection.There is a critical need to bring forward new PrEP options that are informed by and designed for the communities that could benefit from PrEP in Europe.Jared Baeten MD, PhD, vice president for HI...