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A fire at a bar in Austria kills 1 and severely injures 21 New Year’s party revelers

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:16:36 GMT

BERLIN (AP) — One person died and 21 people were severely injured when fire broke out at a bar in the southeastern Austrian city of Graz in the early hours of the New Year.Austrian police said that the fire broke out around 4 a.m. at a bar in the city center where people were attending a New Year’s party.One person, who has not yet been identified, suffered fatal injuries, Styrian state police said in a statement. At least a further three people are still in critical condition at a hospital’s intensive care unit.The cause of the fire, which broke out at the entrance of the bar, was not immediately known but investigators were looking into a technical defect.The Associated Press

Pakistan arrests nearly two dozen members of outlawed Pakistani Taliban linked to multiple attacks

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:16:36 GMT

MULTAN, Pakistan (AP) — Pakistan’s counterterrorism police said Monday they arrested nearly two dozen members of the outlawed militant group, the Pakistani Taliban, which has been behind several deadly attacks across the country.Acting on intelligence information, the arrests were made in the eastern Punjab province over the past two weeks, the provincial Counterterrorism Department said in a statement.The Pakistani Taliban, known as Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan, or TTP, is a separate group but allied with the Afghan Taliban, who seized power in Afghanistan in August 2021 as U.S. and NATO troops were in the final stages of their pullout from the country after 20 years of war.The statement also said that Mohammad Arshad, an alleged chief commander of the banned Baluch Nationalist Army which mostly operates in southwestern Baluchistan province, was arrested.Baluchistan has been a scene of low-level insurgency by Baluch nationalists for more than two decades. They initially wanted ...

Bangladesh court sentences Nobel laureate Yunus to 6 months in jail for violating labor laws

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:16:36 GMT

DHAKA, Bangladesh (AP) — A labor court in Bangladesh’s capital sentenced Monday Nobel Peace Prize winner Muhammad Yunus to six months in jail for violating the country’s labor laws.Yunus, who pioneered using microcredit to help impoverished people, was present in court and was granted bail. The court gave the defense 30 days to appeal. Grameen Telecom, which he founded as a non-profit, is at the center of the trial.Sheikh Merina Sultana, head of the Third Labor Court of Dhaka, said in her verdict Yunus’ company violated labor laws: 67 of Grameen Telecom employees were supposed to be made permanent, and the employees’ participation and welfare funds were not formed. She also said that following company policy, 5% of the company’s dividends were supposed to be distributed to staff. Sultana found Yunus, as chairman of the company, and three other company directors guilty, sentencing each to six months in jail.Grameen Telecom owns 34% of the country’s largest mobile phone company,...

Man fatally shot, 2 other wounded while sitting inside home on Southwest Side

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:16:36 GMT

CHICAGO — A man was shot and killed early Monday in what Chicago police are calling the first homicide of the new year.Police said the shooting occurred around 12:45 a.m. near 70th Street and South Wabash in Chicago’s Greater Grand Crossing neighborhood.Police said three people were inside a home when gunfire came through the window.A 53-year-old man was shot multiple times. He was pronounced dead at the scene. Read more: Latest Chicago news headlines A 48-year-old woman was shot in the arm. She was taken to the hospital in fair condition, police said.A 49-year-old woman was also taken the hospital after she was shot on the side of the head. She’s listed in critical condition.No one is in custody. Police are investigating.

Cloudy start to the week

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:16:36 GMT

The first day of 2024 will be mainly cloudy around Chicago. Morning lake effect snow is in the forecast. It lingers a bit longer for Northwest Indiana. NNW 5-10. High of 35 Interactive Radar: Track showers and storms here Monday night will be mostly cloudy, decreasing some clouds, WSW 5-10. Low of 27.Full forecast details and more at the WGN Weather Center blog Tuesday is set to be mostly cloudy, SW 10-20 G30. High of 38.

New Year's Eve sweeps across the globe, but wars cast a shadow on 2024

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:16:36 GMT

New Year’s Day arrived to cheers from thousands in New York’s Times Square where a sparkling crystal ball descended to start 2024 with hope for some, even as the world’s ongoing conflicts subdued celebrations and raised security concerns across the globe.“It’s beautiful,” Corin Christian of Charlotte, North Carolina, said of the scene seconds past midnight as Frank Sinatra’s “New York, New York” blared from speakers in the square and many in the crowd held cell phones in the air, trying to capture the spectacle.“It’s going very well so far,” said Jacob Eriksson of Salt Lake City, Utah, with the earliest assessment of the New Year. The march of midnight from time zone to time zone brought 2024 first to places like Australia, where more than 1 million people watched a pyrotechnic display centered around Sydney’s famous Opera House and harbor bridge — a number of spectators equivalent to 1 in 5 of the city’s residents. It would be another 16 hours before New York finished 2023.There we...

Legal pot, abortion rights and paid leave: A whirlwind year at the Minnesota Legislature

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:16:36 GMT

By late last spring, the rush of headlines coming out of Minnesota’s Capitol seemed like it might never stop.Marijuana legalization. Paid family and medical leave. New legal protections for abortion. Universal school meals. Free college tuition. A mandate for a new state flag.Minnesota’s whirlwind 2023 legislative session is likely to go down as one of the most consequential in a generation. And while some of the new laws have already gone into effect, the impacts of many of the new policies won’t be seen for years.In November 2022, voters gave the Democratic-Farmer-Labor party majorities in both the Senate and House, and another four-year term to DFL Gov. Tim Walz, clearing the path for a sweeping agenda held back by years of divided government.With little leverage, Republicans who had once controlled the Senate could only sit back and watch as members of the DFL “trifecta” swiftly pursued their agenda.So much new legislation was enacted it might be tough to remember ev...

Opinion: A New Year’s wish for Colorado — more bipartisanship

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:16:36 GMT

The arrival of the New Year prompts us all to pause, take a breath, and reflect on the journey of the past twelve months. It is a time to reassess our priorities, refine our visions, and chart a course for the year ahead.In the Colorado legislature, 2023 was a rollercoaster ride, marked by high emotions and, unfortunately, few constructive conversations. As we step into 2024, I find myself hoping that this year can be the year of balance through bipartisanship.I want to emphasize that even though Republicans are in the minority, we are far from invisible. Just like our colleagues on the other side of the aisle, we were elected by our constituents to represent their voices and concerns. Our seat at the table should not be overlooked or underestimated. We understand that we will not always get everything we advocate for, but the very least we deserve is a fair opportunity for our ideas to be heard.The conclusion of the regular legislative session left a bitter taste in our mouths. The...

Ask Amy: Father’s “technical” marriage raises questions

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:16:36 GMT

Dear Amy: I recently reached out to my estranged father to inquire about any life changes he may have had recently, because I was going through the federal security clearance process.When asked if he was still married, his response was, “Theoretically yes, but I haven’t had contact with her for over six years and have no intention of renewing contact.”Knowing my father, I am unsurprised that he is currently married to someone that he has no contact with and is unwilling to divorce.However, I am mad at him for once again treating marriage as a trivial affair he can walk away from with no consequences. I pity his partner and sometimes wonder if I should convince her to divorce him and take her fair share.While I understand that this is between him and his “technical wife” (using his terms), I feel like this is a matter that does involve me from a legal perspective.I do not want to fight a legal battle regarding powers of attorney or probates 20 years down the line. (I am a...

Achieving Holistic Sustainability Through Food Systems

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:16:36 GMT

If there is one thing that recent years have made evident, from COVID-19 to climate change, it is that people and the environment are interconnected and constantly impacting one another. - writes Azis Armand.There are many ways that we can choose to restore the health of our planet, and although phasing out fossil fuels should undoubtedly be a principal mechanism, it is only one of the many strategies that must be employed. Another vital and direct impact we can have in strengthening our ecosystem is through resilient and sustainable food systems.Food systems are both a major cause of climate change—accounting for a third of all greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions— and extremely fragile in the face of natural disasters. Therefore, climate mitigation and decarbonization strategies in this sector will be critical to reaching the Paris Agreement’s overarching goal of limiting temperature increases to ‘well below 2 degrees Celsius’. As a country particularly vulnerable to climate change...