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Israeli parliament approves key part of judicial overhaul that has exposed deep fissures in society

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:51:55 GMT

JERUSALEM (AP) — Israeli lawmakers on Monday approved a key portion of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s divisive plan to reshape the country’s justice system despite massive protests that have exposed unprecedented fissures in Israeli society.The vote came after a stormy session in which opposition lawmakers chanted “shame” and then stormed out of the chamber.It reflected the determination of Netanyahu and his far-right allies to move ahead with the plan, which has tested the delicate social ties that bind the country, rattled the cohesion of its powerful military and repeatedly drawn concern from its closest ally, the United States.The overhaul calls for sweeping changes aimed at curbing the powers of the judiciary, from limiting the Supreme Court’s ability to challenge parliamentary decisions to changing the way judges are selected. Netanyahu and his allies say the changes are needed to curb the powers of unelected judges. Protesters, who come from a wide swath of Israeli socie...

Arizona woman’s heat death after her power was cut off spurred changes, but advocates want more

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:51:55 GMT

PHOENIX (AP) — Stephanie Pullman died on a sweltering Arizona day after her electricity was cut off because of a $51 debt.Five years later, the 72-year-old’s story remains at the heart of efforts to prevent others in Arizona from having their power cut off, leaving them without life-saving air conditioning in temperatures that have topped 110 degrees Fahrenheit (43 degrees Celsius) on every day this month.“Stephanie Pullman was the face of the fight that helped put the disconnect rules in place for the big, regulated utilities in Arizona,” said Stacey Champion, an advocate who pushed for new regulations. “But we need more.”Arizona Public Service, known as APS, disconnected Pullman’s power in September 2018 at a time when outside temperatures in her retirement community west of Phoenix reached 107 degrees Fahrenheit (41.6 Celsius). Just days before, a $125 payment was made toward Pullman’s past-due bill of $176.Her body was found inside her home during a subsequent ...

Stock market today: Wall Street opens higher ahead of busy week of earnings and Fed news

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:51:55 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — Wall Street is ticking higher in early trading to start a week full of updates on where interest rates and profits for the stock market’s most influential companies are heading. The S&P 500 was up 0.4% shortly after the opening bell Monday, coming off its eighth winning week in the last 10. The Dow was up 94 points, or 0.3%, and the Nasdaq composite was up 0.5%. Three Big Tech companies are set to report their latest earnings this week: Alphabet, Meta Platforms and Microsoft. On Wednesday the Federal Reserve holds its latest interest rate policy meeting. THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. AP’s earlier story follows below.BANGKOK (AP) — World shares were mixed on Monday as investors cautiously awaited another interest rate hike by the Federal Reserve. Benchmarks rose in London, Tokyo and Frankfurt but fell in Paris and Shanghai. U.S. futures edged higher while oil prices fell.U.S. futures edged lower and oil prices also fell. The Federal Reserve is widely expected to...

Navalny associate jailed as Russian opposition crackdown continues

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:51:55 GMT

MOSCOW (AP) — An associate of imprisoned Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny was convicted on extremism charges Monday as the Kremlin continues to crack down on political activists.Vadim Ostanin, who previously headed Navalny’s office in the southern Siberian city of Barnaul, was sentenced to nine years in a penal colony after being found guilty of organizing an extremist community and belonging to a nonprofit that “infringes on citizens’ rights,” Navalny’s team wrote on social media.Prosecutors had previously asked for the 46-year-old to be imprisoned for 11 years.Ostanin was detained in November 2021, several months after Navalny’s Foundation for Fighting Corruption and his regional offices were labeled as “extremist organizations” by the Russian government.Ostanin’s case is the latest in a string of recent convictions against regional activists linked to Navalny’s work.Lilia Chanysheva, who headed Navalny’s headquarters in the central Russian city of Ufa, was sentenced to 7 ...

Rolls Royce, Bentley vehicles stolen from Riverdale dealership; suspects sought

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:51:55 GMT

Toronto police say there are are searching for three suspects after luxury vehicles were stolen from a car dealership in Riverdale.Police responded to a theft call at the dealership near Dundas Street East and Carroll Street near Broadview Avenue around 3:45 p.m. on Saturday.Investigators say three suspects walked into the dealership and stole three vehicles:black 2021 Rolls Royce Dawn, with no licence plateblack 2022 Bentley Bentayga, with Ontario licence plate CYAA632white 2020 Rolls Royce Cullinan, with Ontario licence plate CXCY439The vehicles were last seen travelling north on Carroll Street.Police have released security camera images of the three suspects.Open Gallery3 items

Philippine president vows to defend territory, announces amnesty for rebels in key speech

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:51:55 GMT

MANILA, Philippines (AP) — Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Monday underscored his administration’s resolve to defend the country’s territory through diplomacy in a key speech but did not mention China, with which it has had an escalating series of conflicts in the disputed South China Sea.Marcos also announced in his state-of-the-nation speech to Congress that he would offer an amnesty to armed insurgents and would crack down on smugglers and hoarders of agricultural products, whom he blamed for steep spikes in food prices.Despite an array of problems and uncertainties sparked in part by the war in Ukraine, Marcos said the dedication and patriotism he had seen among Filipino workers in and out of government have kept him optimistic.“With this in my heart, I know that the state of the nation is sound, and is improving,” Marcos said to applause from lawmakers and top government officials in the heavily secured House of Representatives.Marcos outlined reforms pursued...

At least 17 bodies recovered after a boat capsizes in Senegal’s capital

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:51:55 GMT

DAKAR, Senegal (AP) — At least 17 people were found dead after a boat capsized in Senegal’s capital, said local officials on Monday. The bodies were discovered by the navy early in the morning and are believed to be migrants because of the type of boat they were in, said Ndeye Top Gueye, the mayor of the Ouakam neighborhood of Dakar where the bodies were found.“Because of the size and shape, we know that it’s a pirogue (a long wooden boat),” she said. While this is the first time bodies have washed up in the neighborhood migrant deaths at sea are becoming more common in Senegal, she said. “It’s not the first time, it’s the umpteenth time. The government needs to take countermeasures.” It was unclear where the people were coming from, what nationalities they were or where they were going. But the Atlantic migration route is one of the deadliest in the world, with nearly 800 people dying or going missing in the first half of 2023, according to Walking Borders a Spanish aid...

Celebrity birthdays for the week of July 30-Aug. 5

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:51:55 GMT

Celebrity birthdays for the week of July 30-Aug. 5:July 30: Blues guitarist Buddy Guy is 87. Singer Paul Anka is 82. Jazz saxophonist David Sanborn is 78. Actor William Atherton (“Die Hard” films”) is 76. Actor-turned-politician Arnold Schwarzenegger is 76. Actor Jean Reno (“The Da Vinci Code,” ″Godzilla”) is 75. Actor Ken Olin is 69. Actor Delta Burke is 67. Actor Richard Burgi (“Desperate Housewives”) is 65. Singer-songwriter Kate Bush is 65. Country singer Neal McCoy is 65. Director Richard Linklater (“Boyhood,” “Dazed and Confused”) is 63. Actor Laurence Fishburne is 62. Actor Lisa Kudrow (“Friends”) is 60. Guitarist Dwayne O’Brien of Little Texas is 60. Actor Vivica A. Fox is 59. Actor Terry Crews (“Brooklyn Nine-Nine,” ″Everybody Hates Chris”) is 55. Actor Simon Baker (“The Mentalist”) is 54. Director Christopher Nolan (“Memento,” ″Insomnia”) is 53. Actor Tom Green is 52. Drummer Brad Hargreaves of Third Eye Blind is 52. Actor Christine Taylor (“Dodgeball,” “The Brady Bunch Mo...

Presser held to address growing security concerns for street vendors

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:51:55 GMT

CHICAGO -- A presser is being held Monday morning with Alderman Sigcho-Lopez to address the community's growing security concerns for street vendors.Community members plan to discuss the challenges they face while running their businesses from crime to food licensing requirements. Over the past year, there have been a string of attacks on street vendors, some reporting they had been robbed at gunpoint multiple times.Street vendors are especially vulnerable because they work alone and usually only deal with cash. 16-year-old shot and killed over the weekend grandson of South Side pastor, activist Former Mayor Lori Lightfoot had suggested vendors go cashless to help diffuse the risk, but several vendors responded that it would not be feasible for them citing technological challenges as an obstacle. Aldermen and community leaders asked the 10th district police to step up patrol in early mornings. Volunteers also organized a citizen's patrol to provide more security. Food licensing a...

Elon Musk reveals new black and white X logo to replace Twitter's blue bird

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:51:55 GMT

LONDON (AP) — Elon Musk has unveiled a new black and white “X” logo to replace Twitter's famous blue bird as he follows through with a major rebranding of the social media platform he bought for $44 billion last year.Musk replaced his own Twitter icon with a white X on a black background and posted a picture on Monday of the design projected on Twitter’s San Francisco headquarters.The X started appearing on the top of the desktop version of Twitter on Monday, but the bird was still dominant across the phone app.Musk had asked fans for logo ideas and chose one, which he described as minimalist Art Deco, saying it “certainly will be refined.”“And soon we shall bid adieu to the twitter brand and, gradually, all the birds," Musk tweeted Sunday.The X.com web domain now redirects users to Twitter.com, Musk said. ‘Barbie’ takes box office crown while ‘Oppenheimer’ soars in historic weekend In response to questions about what tweets would be called when the rebranding ...