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Despite U.S. Guarantee, Guantánamo Prisoner Released to Algeria Immediately Imprisoned and Abused

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:57:09 GMT

When Saeed Bakhouch was repatriated to Algeria in late April from the U.S. prison at Guantánamo Bay after 21 years of detention without charge, his lawyer was assured by the State Department that he would be treated humanely. Still, his longtime lawyer, H. Candace Gorman, worried about her client’s upcoming release. Bakhouch’s mental health had deteriorated in the last five years; he had stopped meeting with her and retreated into himself. She feared that her client might be arrested after being returned to Algeria unless given real help and resources.That’s exactly what happened. Almost immediately after Bakhouch landed in Algiers, he passed through the usual interrogation process for former Guantánamo detainees in Algeria. After a two-week period of detention and interrogation, he appeared before a judge in early May. The judge told Bakhouch that his story did not match what the information the U.S. provided, Gorman explained to The Intercept.“He was being stripped of all of his r...

Philippoussis fined $10,000 for breaching betting sponsorship rules and given 4-month suspended ban

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:57:09 GMT

LONDON (AP) — Tennis coach and former top-10 player Mark Philippoussis has been fined $10,000 by the International Tennis Integrity Agency for breaching betting sponsorship rules.The ITIA said Wednesday that the Australian was also given a four-month suspended ban “after receiving payment for providing a voiceover to promotional content for a gaming operator.”It said Philippoussis did not contest the charge and had fully cooperated with the investigation.“As a sport, tennis has decided that accredited individuals should not have commercial relationships with betting companies,” ITIA CEO Karen Moorhouse said. “Whilst this case is clearly not one of corruption, it is a rule that players, coaches, and others in the sport need to be aware of.”Philippoussis was runner-up to Pat Rafter at the 1998 U.S. Open and lost to Roger Federer in the 2003 Wimbledon final. He has worked with Stefanos Tsitsipas as a coach.___AP tennis: https://apnews.com/hub/tennis and https://twitter.com/AP_Spo...

Union Pacific, Boeing rise; Snap, Microsoft fall: Wednesday, 7/26/2023

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:57:09 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — Stocks that are trading heavily or have substantial price changes on Wednesday:Union Pacific Corp. (UNP), up $21.23 to $236.78The railroad operator installed a CEO that an activist investor had been pushing for. Boeing Co. (BA), up $12.44 to $226.56The aircraft maker reported a smaller loss for the spring than analysts expected, and revenue beat forecasts. Alphabet Inc. (GOOG), up $6.90 to $129.69The parent company of Google snapped out of an unprecedented advertising slump. Microsoft Corp. (MSFT), down $14.05 to $336.93The tech giant made comments that tempered huge expectations for growth from artificial intelligence. Snap Inc. (SNAP), down $2.41 to $10.10The owner of the Snapchat app reported declining sales and issued a disappointing forecast.Gap Inc. (GPS), up 51 cents to $9.73The clothing retailer tapped a Mattel executive responsible for re-energizing Barbie and Hot Wheels as its next CEO.NatWest Group PLC (NWG), down 18 cents to $6.30The CEO of the British ba...

Olympic champion Canada comes back to beat Ireland 2-1 at the Women’s World Cup

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:57:09 GMT

PERTH, Australia (AP) — Conceding a goal directly from a corner kick against Ireland on Wednesday, Olympic champion Canada was in trouble in its second game of the Women’s World Cup.After a disappointing 0-0 draw with Nigeria in its opening match of the tournament, and with iconic forward Christine Sinclair on the bench, Canada’s hopes of advancing from the group stage were under threat.Up against a determined Ireland, an inspired Katie McCabe and torrential rain at Rectangular Stadium, the odds were stacking up against the Canadians.But with the character of Olympic gold medallists, a touch of fortune and some help from the bench, Canada recovered. Adriana Leon scored the decisive goal early in the second half to complete a come-from-behind 2-1 win that moved her country to the top of Group B and within sight of the round of 16.That hadn’t looked like being the case when McCabe curled a fourth-minute corner into the back of the net to give Ireland the lead and its first...

Hunter Biden’s plea deal on tax charges falls apart after judge expresses concern about terms of the agreement

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:57:09 GMT

WILMINGTON, Del. (AP) — Hunter Biden’s plea deal on tax charges falls apart after judge expresses concern about terms of the agreement.Source

2 men arrested in Greece for allegedly smuggling migrants across Aegean Sea to wildfire-hit island

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:57:09 GMT

ATHENS, Greece (AP) — Greek authorities have arrested two people for allegedly smuggling 35 migrants across the Aegean Sea, using an unusual itinerary that brought them to a wildfire-afflicted island close to the mainland.The coast guard said the two men were stopped off the island of Evia late Tuesday on a 15-meter (45-foot) speedboat heading east in the direction of Turkey, from where they are believed to have departed.Shortly afterward, the 35 migrants were found on a beach in the vicinity of Kymi, a town in central Evia, the coast guard said in a statement. The island has been hit by wildfires in recent days, and on Tuesday a water-dropping plane crashed there while fighting a blaze, killing both pilots.Greece remains a major entry point for people fleeing conflict or hardship in the Middle East and Africa for a better life in the European Union. For years, most were smuggled in small boats from the Turkish coast to Greece’s nearby eastern Aegean islands, but intense patro...

Mississippi can’t restrict absentee voting assistance this year, US judge says as he blocks law

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:57:09 GMT

JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — A federal judge blocked a new Mississippi law that would set criminal penalties for some people who help others with absentee voting — a ruling that comes as absentee ballots are already available in party primaries for governor and other state offices.U.S. District Judge Henry Wingate wrote in his order Tuesday that Mississippi cannot enforce the law during this year’s primaries or general election.“The voting polls are expected to extend outstretched hands of welcome and provide unfettered access to conscientious citizens anxious to enjoy ‘participatory democracy,’ whether those citizens be among the vulnerable and the disabled,” Wingate wrote.He wrote that the state law violates the Voting Rights Act, a federal law that says any voter who is blind, disabled or unable to read may receive assistance “by a person of the voter’s choice,” other than the voter’s employer or union.The state law — which was supposed to take effect July 1 — would se...

ChatGPT and Threads reflect the challenges of fast tech adoption

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:57:09 GMT

Omar H. Fares, Toronto Metropolitan University and Seung Hwan (Mark) Lee, Toronto Metropolitan University ListenChatGPT recently experienced a decline in user engagement for the first time since its launch in November 2022. From May to June, engagement dropped 9.7 per cent, with the largest decline — 10.3 per cent — occurring in the United States.Meanwhile, Meta’s Threads platform experienced a significant drop in user numbers, going from more than 49 million users on July 7 to 23.6 million active users by July 14. In the same time frame, the average time users in the U.S. spent on the app dropped from a peak of 21 minutes in early July to just above six minutes.In the tech world, companies are always racing to be the first ones to introduce new innovations, aiming for the “first mover’s advantage.” This refers to a firm’s ability to get a head start over competitors by being the first to enter a new product category or market.However, being a trailblazer doesn’t guarantee an easy r...

Secondary publishing rights can improve public access to academic research

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:57:09 GMT

Brianne Selman, University of Winnipeg and Mark Swartz, Queen’s University, Ontario ListenCanada’s federal research granting agencies recently announced a review of the Tri-Agency Open Access Policy on Publications, with the goal of requiring immediate open and free access to all academic publications generated through Tri-Agency supported research by 2025.To meet this requirement, the Canadian government should empower academic authors through the adoption of secondary publishing rights. These rights would ensure that authors can immediately “republish publicly funded research after its first publication in an open access repository or elsewhere,” even in cases where this is forbidden by publishers.Tweaking the Copyright Act to include such rights would give academic authors the ability to make taxpayer-funded journal articles available to the public through open access upon publication.Enabling Canada’s research to be openly accessible without barriers will contribute to the...

Deputy who ran red light pleads guilty in crash

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:57:09 GMT

DENVER (KDVR) — A Boulder County deputy pleaded guilty to reckless driving after he drove through a red light and crashed into a car during a law enforcement response.Deputy Daniel Pratt was sentenced to 90 days probation, 40 hours of community service and a maximum fine of $300, according to the 20th Judicial District Attorney's Office. The deputy also had to take a driving class. Caught on camera: Female possibly forced into car at shopping center "Although Deputy Pratt was speeding to a call for emergency assistance, he drove recklessly and violated the requirements of the Sheriff’s Office by speeding and not slowing at the red light," District Attorney Michael Dougherty said in a statement. "Having met with the victims, I know that this crash significantly impacted their health and well-being."The crash happened around 9:30 p.m. on Aug. 12, 2022.Pratt was responding to a call for backup at the Boulder County Fair, where fights had broken out, the DA's office said. He was bound...