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Lebanese official says bullets hit defense minister’s car near Beirut but no one was hurt

Published Thu, 26 Dec 2024 08:40:17 GMT

BEIRUT (AP) — Two bullets hit the car of Lebanon’s caretaker defense minister on Thursday while he was driving in a convoy near Beirut, a senior security official said. No one was hurt.A senior Lebanese Army official said an investigation was underway to find out if the minister was targeted. He spoke on condition of anonymity in line with regulations.Defense Minister Maurice Sleem said in a brief statement that nobody was hurt, without giving further details.Kareem Chehayeb, The Associated Press

The death toll from wildfires in Hawaii could climb, officials warn. Follow live updates

Published Thu, 26 Dec 2024 08:40:17 GMT

Follow live updates about wildfires racing across part of Maui in Hawaii, destroying sections of a historic town on the island and forcing some to flee to the relative safety of the ocean, where the Coast Guard rescued them. The fires forced evacuations in some areas, including the popular tourist spot of Lahaina. The National Weather Service says Hurricane Dora, which is passing south of the island chain at a safe distance, was partly to blame for strong winds driving the flames, knocking out power and grounding firefighting helicopters.OFFICIALS WARN THAT HAWAII WILDFIRE DEATH TOLL COULD CLIMB Officials in Hawaii warned Thursday that the death toll — already at 36 — could rise, with the fires still burning and teams spreading out to search charred areas.Search-and-rescue teams are fanning out in the devastated areas in the hopes of finding survivors, Adam Weintraub, communication director for the Hawaii Emergency Management Agency, said Thursday on ABC’s “Good Morning America.”Add...

7 arrested as authorities fear Greece may be targeted by violent soccer supporters’ gangs

Published Thu, 26 Dec 2024 08:40:17 GMT

THESSALONIKI, Greece (AP) — Police in northern Greece on Thursday detained seven Romanian men carrying knives and protective gear, amid concerns that a deadly soccer-related attack this week could attract more groups of violent supporters from around Europe.The seven men were arrested near the Greek border with Bulgaria after police found three knives during vehicle inspections, as well as cans of spray paint and protective gear normally used for boxing, authorities said.Greek club Olympiakos faces Genk of Belgium later Thursday in qualifying for the Europa League in Piraeus, near Athens, under heightened security. Greek authorities remain on alert after a 29-year-old Greek fan was stabbed to death late Monday outside AEK Athens’ stadium, prompting the cancellation of a Champions League qualifier against Dinamo Zagreb.More than 100 fans were arrested, mostly Dinamo supporters, and remain in police detention after the blanket charge of murder and membership of a criminal organization...

A global law firm separates from its Chinese partner, citing cybersecurity and data rules

Published Thu, 26 Dec 2024 08:40:17 GMT

BEIJING (AP) — One of the world’s biggest law firms said Thursday it is separating from the Chinese firm that was part of its global network for eight years, citing changes in cybersecurity and other rules that have rattled foreign companies.The decision by Dentons follows warnings by business groups that global companies are postponing or shifting investment away from China due to concern about an expanded anti-espionage law, tighter controls on business, a data security crackdown and raids on foreign consulting firms.Dentons said it was separating from Beijing Dacheng Law Offices due to changes in cybersecurity and data protection but gave no details. Dentons said in a statement Dacheng will be a “separate, standalone firm” that is its “preferred law firm” for clients with needs in China.Dacheng joined the Dentons network in 2015. Dentons, which says it has more than 10,000 lawyers in some 80 countries, added the Chinese characters for Dacheng to its logo used worldwide.The arrang...

Italy investigates migrant boat disaster, with 41 feared dead. Four survivors tell a harrowing tale

Published Thu, 26 Dec 2024 08:40:17 GMT

ROME (AP) — Prosecutors in Sicily on Thursday investigated a capsizing that left 41 migrants missing in the Mediterranean Sea after they set out in a flimsy boat from Tunisia, the latest in a string of similar tragedies involving people who entrust themselves to smugglers to reach Italy’s shores.Four young migrants who were rescued by a passing merchant ship told doctors and police on a tiny Italian island where they were brought on Wednesday that they survived by holding on to inner tubes for hours. They and a few other survivors spotted an empty boat a nd struggled to reach it. But only the four of them made it to the boat and climbed aboard — to find the iron-hulled, open-topped vessel had no engine. State TV reported that the migrants survived for some four days on four bottles of drinking water and a half-package of crackers they found in the boat. A Malta-flagged ship rescued them, and an Italian Coast Guard vessel took them to Lampedusa island. The survivors said 41 fel...

3 charged, firearms recovered after multiple carjackings in York region

Published Thu, 26 Dec 2024 08:40:17 GMT

Three people are facing multiple charges after police officers recovered two firearms and two stolen vehicles following carjackings in York region.On Aug. 5, just before midnight, York police received a call of an attempted carjacking in the area of Mistysugar Trail and Thornhill Woods Drive, near Highway 7 and Bathurst Street, in Vaughan.The victim told police that a male suspect pointed a gun at her, tried to take her car, and took off when approached by the victim’s husband. The vehicle was not taken and there were no injuries.Half an hour later, at approximately 12:30 a.m., police received a call about another carjacking, this time in the area of Fairburn Drive and Highway 7 East in Markham.The victim said his Mercedes was taken at gunpoint by a male suspect.Police located the suspects and officers were able to arrest one of them and recover the victim’s Mercedes. A loaded handgun was later located near the scene.On Aug. 8, the second outstanding suspect was located in a stolen ...

Taylor Swift announces ‘1989 (Taylor’s Version)’ at Eras Tour show in Los Angeles

Published Thu, 26 Dec 2024 08:40:17 GMT

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Taylor Swift closed the 2023 U.S. leg of her landmark Eras Tour in Los Angeles in a big way, announcing the fourth edition of her re-recording project: “1989 (Taylor’s Version).” After playing a few tracks from her “1989” era live, the pop superstar approached the center of the stage with an acoustic guitar in hand and suggested to the audience that she had been working on something big. “Instead of telling you about it, we’ll just show you,” she told the crowd as the screen illuminated behind her. “’1989 (Taylor’s Version)’ available Oct. 27!” she cheered.Just last month, Swift released her re-recording of “Speak Now” and soon claimed the record for the woman with the most No. 1 albums in history. The “Taylor’s Version” projects were sparked by music manager Scooter Braun’s purchase and subsequent sale of her early catalog.Aside from breaking some news, across more than three hours at SoFi Stadium, Swift offered fans a bevy of career-spann...

Harvest of horseshoe crabs, needed for blue blood, stopped during spawning season in national refuge

Published Thu, 26 Dec 2024 08:40:17 GMT

The federal government is shutting down the harvest of a species of marine invertebrate in a national wildlife refuge during the spawning season to try to give the animal a chance to reproduce.Fishermen harvest horseshoe crabs so the animals can be used as bait and so their blood can be used to make medical products. Conservationists have long pushed to limit the harvest of the animals, in part because horseshoe crab eggs are vitally important food for migratory birds.The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service issued a ruling on Monday that calls for the end of horseshoe crab harvesting in Cape Romain National Wildlife Refuge in South Carolina from March 15 to July 15.The service wrote that allowing the harvesting would “materially interfere and detract from the purposes for which the refuge was established and the mission of the National Wildlife Refuge System.” The refuge is is about 66,000 acres (26,700 hectares) including marshes, beaches and islands located about a half hour’s dr...

Utah’s multibillion dollar oil train proposal chugs along amid environment and derailment concerns

Published Thu, 26 Dec 2024 08:40:17 GMT

DUCHESNE, Utah (AP) — On plateaus overlooking the Uinta Basin’s hills of sandstone and sagebrush, pumpjacks bob their heads as they lift viscous black and yellow oil from the earth that will eventually make everything from fuel to polyester fabric.To move fossil fuels from the Uinta Basin’s massive reserve to refineries around the country, officials in Utah and oil and gas companies are chugging along with a plan to invest billions to build an 88-mile (142-kilometer) rail line through national forest and tribal land that could quadruple production.The Uinta Basin Railway would let producers, currently limited to tanker trucks, ship an additional 350,000 barrels of crude daily on trains up to 2 miles long. Backers say it would buoy the local economy and lessen American dependence on oil imports.“We still have a huge need for fuel and we’re not creating more capacity in the Gulf or anywhere in the United States,” said Duchesne County Commissioner Greg Miles, who co-chairs ...

West African leaders meet on Niger coup but have few options as a military junta defies mediation

Published Thu, 26 Dec 2024 08:40:17 GMT

NIAMEY, Niger (AP) — West African heads of state began meeting Thursday on next steps after Niger’s military junta defied their deadline to reinstate the nation’s deposed president, but analysts say the bloc known as ECOWAS may be running out of options as support fades for a military intervention.Nine of the 11 heads of state expected to attend were present, including the presidents of Senegal, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Togo, Benin, Guinea-Bissau and Sierra Leone. The non-ECOWAS leaders of Mauritania and Burundi also participated in the closed-door meeting in Nigeria’s capital, Abuja.“It is crucial that we prioritize diplomatic negotiations and dialogue as the bedrock of our approach,” said Nigerian President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, who currently chairs the bloc, said before the closed part of the meeting. He said leaders must act with a “sense of urgency,” though appeared to retreat from the bloc’s earlier threat to use force.As Niger’s junta turns away most efforts a...