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Biden to host Marcos for talks at White House next month

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:45:54 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden will host Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. for talks at the White House next month as the U.S. looks to continue to tighten relations with the Pacific nation.White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said Thursday that the two leaders’ meeting on May 1 is expected to focus on deepening economic cooperation, climate change, human rights, efforts to promote a free and open Indo-Pacific region and more.The visit comes after the Philippines announced earlier this year that it would allow U.S. forces to broaden their footprint in the Southeast Asian nation. It was one of a series of moves by the administration aimed strengthening an arc of military alliances in the Indo-Pacific to better counter China, including in any future confrontation over Taiwan.Biden and Marcos had their first face-to-face meeting in September on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly.Marcos, the son and namesake of the country’s former dictator, took o...

California driver accused of intentionally mowing down teens

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:45:54 GMT

VENTURA, Calif. (AP) — A man accused of intentionally ramming his car into a group of California high school students, killing one and injuring three others, was charged Thursday with murder and other counts in a series of alleged crimes earlier this week.Austin Eis, 24, of Camarillo, appeared in a Ventura County courtroom but didn’t enter a plea. His attorney asked that his arraignment be postponed, and Eis was ordered held without bail until his court hearing next month, the county district attorney’s office said in a statement.Eis is accused of committing a string of crimes in Ventura County on Tuesday. Prosecutors allege that he entered a Simi Valley Walmart where he used pepper spray and stabbed a worker, “physically assaulted and attempted to drag a second employee and lunged at two additional employees with a knife,” according to the DA’s office statement.He then left and forced his way inside a home in neighboring Camarillo, where he argued with some member...

North Korea lambasts G-7, says its nukes are ‘stark reality’

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:45:54 GMT

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — North Korea’s foreign minister on Friday called the Group of Seven wealthy democracies a “tool for ensuring the U.S. hegemony” as she lambasted the group’s recent call for the North’s denuclearization. The top diplomats from G-7 nations, who met recently in Japan, had jointly condemned the North’s recent ballistic missile tests and reiterated their commitment to the goal of North Korea’s complete abandonment of its nuclear weapons. Their communique was prepared as a template for leaders at the G-7 summit next month in Hiroshima, where North Korea’s nuclear program will likely be discussed again.North Korean Foreign Minister Choe Son Hui said her country will take unspecified “strong counteraction” if G-7 countries — the United States, Japan, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Canada, Italy and the European Union — show “any behavioral attempt” to infringe upon the fundamental interests of North Korea.“G7, a closed group of a handful of egoistic countries,...

MP Han Dong sues Global News for defamation over foreign meddling allegations

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:45:54 GMT

OTTAWA — Toronto MP Han Dong is suing Global News and its parent company, Corus Entertainment, over stories he says portrayed him as a “traitor” and a knowing participant in Chinese interference in Canada.The statement of claim, provided by his lawyers and filed Thursday with the Ontario Superior Court in Toronto, accuses Global News of publishing “false, malicious, irresponsible, and defamatory” stories that have “destroyed … Dong’s hard-earned reputation and career.”In March, Global published a story citing unidentified security sources who alleged Dong told a Chinese diplomat in February 2021 that releasing Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor would benefit the Conservatives.The two Canadian men at that time had been detained in China since December 2018, just over a week after the RCMP arrested Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou in Vancouver on a U.S. extradition warrant.Global had previously published allegations that Dong benefited from Chines...

Thefts prompt 17 states to urge recall of Kia, Hyundai cars

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:45:54 GMT

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — Attorneys general in 17 states on Thursday urged the federal government to recall millions of Kia and Hyundai cars because they are too easy to steal, a response to a sharp increase in thefts fueled by a viral social media challenge.Some Kia and Hyundai cars sold in the United States over the last decade do not have engine immobilizers, a standard feature on most cars that prevents the engine from starting unless the key is present. Videos circulating on the social media service TikTok have shown how people can start Kia and Hyundai models by using only a screwdriver and a USB cable. In Los Angeles, thefts of Hyundai and Kia cars increased by about 85% in 2022, now accounting for 20% of all car thefts in the city, according to the California attorney general’s office.These social media-inspired thefts have often ended in tragedy, with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration blaming the stolen car trend for 14 reported crashes and eight deat...

Inspired Maple Leafs dominate Lightning to even series in Game 2

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:45:54 GMT

John Tavares had a hat trick as the Toronto Maple Leafs dominated the Tampa Bay Lightning 7-2 to even their best-of-seven series at 1-1.It’s the first playoff hat trick for the 32-year-old Tavares. Maple Leafs defenceman Morgan Rielly had four assists, setting a playoff record for most in a game.Tavares became the first Maple Leaf with a playoff hat trick since Alexander Mogilny against the Philadelphia Flyers in 2003.JOHNNY TORONTO ????JOHNNY TORONTO ????JOHNNY TORONTO ???? pic.twitter.com/S71S3A1I5r— Toronto Maple Leafs (@MapleLeafs) April 21, 2023Mitch Marner scored two goals and added an assist, Auston Matthews had two helpers of his own, and William Nylander had two points, including a goal. Maple Leafs starter Ilya Samsonov picked up the win, stopping 19 of 21 shots.RELATED: Lightning crush Maple Leafs 7-3 to take Game 1 in TorontoIt was a tale of two teams on Thursday after the Maple Leafs fell flat in Game 1, losing 7-3 in an uninspired and uneven performance.Thi...

GoFundMe created for teacher hospitalized in Jefferson Park hit-and-run

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:45:54 GMT

JEFFERSON PARK, Ill. -- A 59-year-old teacher remains hospitalized after spending the past two weeks in the hospital after a hit-and-run accident in Jefferson Park.Fanar Hanna, an assistant teacher at an early childhood center in Jefferson Park and Gladstone neighborhood, was on her way to work when she was struck by car around 6:30 a.m. on Tuesday, April 4.Surveillance video captured the horrific moment when she was struck that Tuesday morning. DePaul student journalists say university employees got rid of papers covering budget woes "Why did you hit and run? Why didn't you stop? You should have stopped and helped," George Hanna, Fanar's husband said.Since the accident, George has remained at his wife's bedside until visiting hours are over."She is doing better," Fanar's husband said. "She’s progressing. She had bleeding in the brain. Her left arm was broken and her left ankle broken badly."While Fanar survived, she will need six to eight months in a rehabilitation center for the...

Skilling: Storm moves toward Northwest Indiana

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:45:54 GMT

Latest warnings and watches from the National Weather Service.Warmth, elevated humidity's, an incoming cold front and a jet stream overhead are not a great mix if one want to avoid t-storms.Modeling and radar scans depict t-storm bubbling up through the atmosphere and like to be traversing the Chicago area in the 5 to 9 p.m. time frame.Thursday's already featured t-storms—and temps have surged to within striking distance of 8 degree, marking the 8th time in this 20-day old month we've managed temps at or above 70. The month of April is running 7 degree above normal and 10 degree warmer than the opening 20-days of the month a year ago. April 2023 to date ranks 5th warmest of the past 151 Aprils. Interactive Radar: Track showers and storm here Hail and rotating super cellular t-storms are occurring with warnings for severe storms and potential tornadoes already out in western Illinois. Radar there is indicating storm cells racing east/northeast at nearly 50 mph—near highway speeds. ...

Some Chicago employees fired over vaccine mandate should be reinstated, judge rules

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:45:54 GMT

CHICAGO — Some City of Chicago employees fired over Chicago's vaccine mandate should be reinstated with backpay, an Illinois Labor Relations Board judge ruled.The judge found the city didn't bargain in good faith with unions over its 2021 vaccine mandate for city employees. The order applies to AFCSME Council 31 and the Coalition of Unionized Public Employees, which filed similar charges, arguing the city engaged in unfair labor practices during the pandemic, unilaterally implementing the vaccine mandate. Cause of death released for missing Navy sailor found in Lake Michigan The board’s administrative judge found Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s administration didn’t bargain as it should have. The judge ordered the city to reinstate any employee fired because of the vaccination policy and make them whole for the loss of any pay or benefits with 7% interest.However, the board tells WGN-TV News the decision is not final. The city has 30 days to file an appeal, known as an exemption, before th...

Is pickleball becoming too popular? 'Turf wars' break out in Texas

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:45:54 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) – There's no doubt pickleball has taken the U.S. by storm. The Sports and Fitness Industry Association says participation in the sport nearly doubled in 2022 — a year-over-year increase of around 85% and a 158.6% increase over the last three years. At one rec center in Austin, Texas, the sport's popularity boom is overwhelmingly clear. Matt Winebright says he started playing at South Austin Recreation Center three years ago. He said he began seeing the courts get more crowded during the COVID-19 lockdown.  NRG Stadium renaming itself ahead of Taylor Swift tour stops “I think pickleball was starting to become more popular,” he said. “But then it turned into a sport people could still play – even when tennis nets were down, basketball hoops were boarded up and the gyms were closed.”Pickleball was invented in the 1960s by three dads living in Washington state, according to USA Pickleball. It’s sort of like a cross between ping-pong and tennis and takes up about half of ...