Today: September 24, 2024
Today: September 24, 2024

World

World

UN warns Taliban that restrictions on Afghan women and girls make recognition `nearly impossible'

The U.N. envoy for Afghanistan warned the country’s Taliban rulers Wednesday that international recognition as the country’s legitimate government will remain “nearly impossible” unless they lift severe restrictions on women and girls’ education and employment. Roza Otunbayeva told the U.N. Security Council that the Taliban have asked to be recognized by the United Nations and its 192 other member nations, “but at the same time they act against the key values expressed in the United Nations Charter.” In her regular discussions with the Taliban, she said, “I am blunt about the obstacles they have created for

June 21, 2023
UN warns Taliban that restrictions on Afghan women and girls make recognition `nearly impossible'
World

European Union countries agree on a new package of sanctions against Russia over the war in Ukraine

European Union countries on Wednesday agreed on a new package of sanctions against Russia for its war against Ukraine. Sweden, which currently holds the rotating EU presidency, said that the package includes measures aimed at countering sanctions circumvention and individual listings. Details of the measures will be unveiled later this week when the sanctions are officially adopted by written procedure. The EU had previously imposed 10 rounds of sanctions on Russia since President Vladimir Putin ordered his forces into Ukraine on Feb. 24, 2022. Banks, companies and markets have been hit — even parts of the sensitive

June 21, 2023
European Union countries agree on a new package of sanctions against Russia over the war in Ukraine
World

MLB views the UK as a gateway to European growth, with eyes on Paris and Germany

London seems like a no-brainer for a European road trip. Paris is all but assured next. Why not throw in Germany and the Netherlands? Major League Baseball has big plans for Europe, starting with an English reintroduction to the sport this weekend when the St. Louis Cardinals and Chicago Cubs play a two-game series in London. The New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox featured in London four years ago, smashing six home runs in a European debut for MLB that was higher scoring — the Yankees won 17-13 — than the NFL’s first one in London

June 21, 2023
MLB views the UK as a gateway to European growth, with eyes on Paris and Germany
World

Georgia officials lay out obstacles to updating election system before 2024

Georgia election officials said Wednesday that they would need six to nine months to install new software and hardware to update the state’s voting system to protect against security flaws, pushing back against calls to update the system before the 2024 election cycle. “It’s really not an upgrade,” state Deputy Elections Director Michael Barnes said of the work needed on 30,000 voting machines. “This really would require us to fully rebuild the system.” Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger has said the state must wait until 2025, but critics continue to pile on, with Lt. Gov. Burt Jones

June 21, 2023
Georgia officials lay out obstacles to updating election system before 2024
World

PGA Tour's top golfers travel across the country for $20M purse at Travelers Championship

Nathan Grube, the tournament director of the Travelers Championship, used to worry about the years when the U.S. Open took place on the West Coast. Many of the world’s top golfers would make a decision to take a break the week following the major or head to Europe to begin preparing for the Open Championship, rather than travel across the country to play at TPC River Highlands in Connecticut. But this year, in response to LIV Golf, the Travelers was elevated to one of 17 so-called “designated” PGA Tour events, with a much bigger purse and

June 21, 2023
PGA Tour's top golfers travel across the country for $20M purse at Travelers Championship
World

‘Tiger King’ star 'Doc' Antle convicted of wildlife trafficking in Virginia

A wild animal trainer featured in the popular Netflix series “Tiger King” has been convicted of wildlife trafficking in Virginia, the attorney general’s office announced Tuesday. Bhagavan “Doc” Antle was accused of illegally buying endangered lion cubs in Frederick County, Virginia, for display and profit at his South Carolina zoo, Attorney General Jason Miyares said in a news release. A jury convicted Antle on Friday of two felony counts each of wildlife trafficking and conspiring to wildlife traffic. Antle, who owns the Myrtle Beach Safari, appeared in “Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem and Madness,” a Netflix documentary

June 21, 2023
‘Tiger King’ star 'Doc' Antle convicted of wildlife trafficking in Virginia
World

Florida locks up spot in the College World Series finals with a 3-2 win over TCU

One-run games never get old as long as you’re winning — and Florida is doing plenty of that right now. Florida reached the College World Series finals with a 3-2 victory over TCU on Wednesday, making the Gators the fourth team in history to win their bracket with three straight one-run wins. “It’s not easy to get to this point. It’s just not,” coach Kevin O’Sullivan said. “I know I overstate it and say it over and over, but we just played three one-run games and they’re all nail-biters down to the end.” Cade Kurland, who had struggled at the

June 21, 2023
Florida locks up spot in the College World Series finals with a 3-2 win over TCU
World

MLB sued by 17 ex-scouts who say they were discriminated against because of their age

Seventeen former Major League Baseball scouts who say they were discriminated against because of their age sued the league, its teams and Commissioner Rob Manfred on Wednesday. The lawsuit was filed in U.S. District Court in Denver. The former scouts allege violations of the federal Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 along with laws in 11 states and New York City. The scouts, ranging from 55 to 71, allege they were discriminated against from 2020-22. They say MLB and the teams “have acted to prevent the reemployment of older scouts or refused the reemployment of older

June 21, 2023
MLB sued by 17 ex-scouts who say they were discriminated against because of their age
World

FTC accuses Amazon of enrolling consumers into Prime without consent and making it hard to cancel

The Federal Trade Commission sued Amazon on Wednesday for what it called a years-long effort to enroll consumers without consent into its Prime program and making it difficult for them to cancel their subscriptions. In a complaint filed in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington, the agency accused Amazon of using deceptive designs, known as “dark patterns,” to deceive consumers into enrolling in the program. It said the option to purchase items on Amazon without subscribing to Prime was more difficult in many cases. It also said that consumers were sometimes presented

June 21, 2023
FTC accuses Amazon of enrolling consumers into Prime without consent and making it hard to cancel
World

Microsoft, U.S. regulators head to court over $69 billion deal that could reshape video gaming

Microsoft on Thursday will try to gain clearance to complete a $69 billion takeover of video game maker Activision Blizzard in a legal showdown with U.S. regulators that will reshape a pastime that’s bigger than the movie and music industries combined. The battle will pit Microsoft’s ambition to expand its video game imprint beyond its Xbox console against the U.S. Federal Trade Commission’s bid to block a deal that it contends will stifle competition and innovation to the detriment of consumers. It’s the latest twist in a deal that was announced 17 months ago. Both Microsoft

June 21, 2023
Microsoft, U.S. regulators head to court over $69 billion deal that could reshape video gaming
World

A different frontier: Stockton Rush started Titanic sub company to expand access to the deep sea

As other entrepreneurs push the edges of technology to bring well-heeled tourists to space, Stockton Rush saw new opportunities for exploring another frontier: the deep sea. OceanGate, the company he founded in 2009, sought not just to profit from bringing wealthy adventurers to sites such as the wreck of the Titanic, but to help scientists and researchers unravel oceanic mysteries by giving them better access to the sea floor than ever before — in vessels that would break the boundaries of how submersibles are developed. “One of the reasons I started the business was because I

June 21, 2023
A different frontier: Stockton Rush started Titanic sub company to expand access to the deep sea
World

Need for speed: F-16 pilot calls the fighter jets sought by Ukraine 'easy to fly'

F-16 fighter jets hurtle pilots through the sky at up to 2,000 kilometers per hour (1,243 miles per hour). In tight turns or sudden climbs, gravity is pressing so hard on their bodies that some of them might even pass out. Even so, it’s an experience Ukraine is seeking for its own pilots after getting U.S. approval to train and eventually receive the American-made jets to bolster its more than year-old fight against Russia. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy had long pressed Western allies for the planes to gain an advantage in the sky. But to

June 21, 2023
Need for speed: F-16 pilot calls the fighter jets sought by Ukraine 'easy to fly'
World

Greenpeace protests mass logging of old-growth forests in Carpathian Mountains

Greenpeace activists on Wednesday called on the Polish prime minister to take action to protect Poland’s forests, asking the government to limit the harvesting of timber in the vast old-growth forests of the Carpathian Mountains. During a news conference held outside the office of Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki, Greenpeace activists held a section of a fir tree trunk that they took from the forest. It was the conclusion of a 40-day expedition to try to raise awareness about the threats to a forest which is home to bears, lynx and other wildlife. They delivered it to

June 21, 2023
Greenpeace protests mass logging of old-growth forests in Carpathian Mountains
World

NBA-champion Nuggets trade into the 1st round by swapping picks with the Pacers, AP source says

The NBA-champion Denver Nuggets traded into the first round of the draft by acquiring the 29th overall pick from the Indiana Pacers on Wednesday, a person with knowledge of the negotiations said. As part of the deal, the Nuggets will also receive the 32nd pick from the Pacers in Thursday night’s draft. Indiana receives the 40th pick from Denver along with a first-round selection in 2024, according to the person who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the trade of picks hasn’t been announced. Denver is trying to sprinkle in an assortment of

June 21, 2023
NBA-champion Nuggets trade into the 1st round by swapping picks with the Pacers, AP source says
World

Morgan and Rapinoe selected for the US Women's World Cup roster in title defense

Eighteen-year-old Alyssa Thompson was among the 23 players selected Wednesday for the United States team that will defend its title at the Women’s World Cup next month. Thompson, who has been impressive this season as a rookie for Angel City in the National Women’s Soccer League, was called onto the team in early April for a match against Ireland, taking the place of injured forward Mallory Swanson. The roster selected by Vlatko Andonovski includes a mix of both familiar faces and newcomers like Thompson. “We are expecting the level of play at this World Cup to be the best it’s

June 21, 2023
Morgan and Rapinoe selected for the US Women's World Cup roster in title defense
World

Explosion hits a building in Paris, injuring four people. Police are trying to determine the cause

A strong explosion hit a building in Paris’ Left Bank on Wednesday, leaving four people injured and igniting a fire that sent smoke soaring over the domed Pantheon monument and prompted the evacuation of buildings, police said. The cause of the blast was not immediately known. The facade of a building in the 5th arrondissement, or district, collapsed and emergency services were working to determine if anyone was still inside, a Paris police official said. Florence Berthout, mayor of the arrondissement, said four people were in “absolute emergency” condition. “The explosion was extremely violent,” she said, describing

June 21, 2023
Explosion hits a building in Paris, injuring four people. Police are trying to determine the cause
World

King salmon season back on in Alaska after federal appeals court lets fishery open July 1

A U.S. appeals court on Wednesday halted a lower court ruling that would have shut down southeast Alaska’s chinook salmon troll fishery for the summer to protect endangered orca whales that eat the fish. The ruling by a three-judge 9th Circuit Court panel means the summer chinook, or king, salmon season will start as usual next week for an industry that supports some 1,500 fishery workers in southeast Alaska. The opinion said the state and others who were part of the appeal established a sufficient likelihood that certain and substantial impacts of the lower court’s decision

June 21, 2023
King salmon season back on in Alaska after federal appeals court lets fishery open July 1
World

NATO wants to fight climate change. Its chief tells AP the trick is to make armies green but strong

NATO faces a series of dilemmas in its attempts to fight climate change while ensuring the effectiveness of its combat forces, as Europe’s biggest land war in decades ravages Ukraine, the head of the military alliance told The Associated Press in an interview on Wednesday. The world’s armed forces are among the greatest consumers of hydrocarbons – fuel and oil – that contribute to greenhouse gases. They have been in much demand recently as global warming fans conflicts and crises because of resource and food scarcity. The main dilemma NATO is contending with, Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said,

June 21, 2023
NATO wants to fight climate change. Its chief tells AP the trick is to make armies green but strong
World

All railroads must alert first responders within 10 miles of derailed train cargo under new rule

Federal regulators want first responders to a train derailment to know exactly what they are dealing with even before they reach the scene, because the dangerous chemicals trains carry might require a specialized response. So the Pipelines and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration proposed a new rule Wednesday that would require all railroads to immediately send the details of everything aboard their trains to every emergency responder within 10 miles, as soon as the railroad becomes aware of an accident. The new rule comes one day ahead of a National Transportation Safety Board hearing to scrutinize emergency responses

June 21, 2023
All railroads must alert first responders within 10 miles of derailed train cargo under new rule
World

Idaho man accused of killing neighbors with teen who reportedly exposed himself to man's kids

An Idaho father killed a neighboring family because he was upset that the neighbor’s 18-year-old son had reportedly exposed himself to the man’s children, a police document alleges. Majorjon Kaylor, 31, of Kellogg, is charged with four counts of first-degree murder in the Father’s Day shooting. A probable cause affidavit from Idaho State Police Detective Justin Klitch says Kaylor shot Kenneth Guardipee, 65; his daughter Kenna Guardipee, 41; and her youngest son, 16-year-old Aiken Smith, in the temple at close range. Smith’s older brother, 18-year-old Devin Smith, was shot multiple times in the head, according to

June 21, 2023
Idaho man accused of killing neighbors with teen who reportedly exposed himself to man's kids
World

PGA Tour will appear before a Senate panel investigating its deal with Saudi backers of LIV

The PGA Tour said Wednesday that it would appear next month before a Senate subcommittee whose leader asked executives from the tour, Saudi golf interests and LIV Golf to testify as Congress investigates the business deal that upended the sport. Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., announced that the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations would hold a hearing on July 11 to examine the agreement involving the PGA Tour, Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund and the European tour to pool commercial business and rights in a new company. “Our goal is to uncover the facts about what went into

June 21, 2023
PGA Tour will appear before a Senate panel investigating its deal with Saudi backers of LIV
World

Chicago man faces multiple charges in hit-and-run that injured 4 outside ballpark

A 20-year-old Chicago man is facing multiple charges in connection with a hit-and-run collision that injured four pedestrians, two critically, outside Guaranteed Rate Field, the home of the Chicago White Sox, Chicago police said Wednesday night. Condelarious Garcia, 20, faces four felony counts each of failure to report an injury accident and aggravated reckless driving causing bodily harm, police said. He also faces one misdemeanor count of driving on a suspended license, police said, and citations for failure to reduce speed, operating an uninsured motor vehicle, and having an expired registration. Garcia is due in Central Bond

June 22, 2023
Chicago man faces multiple charges in hit-and-run that injured 4 outside ballpark
World

LSU tops No. 1 Wake Forest 5-2 to set up a rematch for a spot in the College World Series finals

Cade Beloso hit a go-ahead three-run homer, freshman Griffin Herring pitched 4 2/3 innings of shutout relief in his longest outing and LSU defeated No. 1 national seed Wake Forest 5-2 on Wednesday night to stay alive in the College World Series. The Tigers (51-16) forced a second bracket final Thursday night and the winner will advance to play Florida in the best-of-three championship series that starts Saturday. The Gators clinched a spot with a 3-2 win over TCU. Wake Forest (54-11) will look to bounce back from its first loss in its eight NCAA Tournament

June 22, 2023
LSU tops No. 1 Wake Forest 5-2 to set up a rematch for a spot in the College World Series finals
World

Cooking gas explosion kills 31 people at a barbecue restaurant in northwestern China

Cooking gas caused a massive explosion at a barbecue restaurant in northwestern China, killing 31 people and injuring seven others during national celebrations on the eve of a long holiday weekend, authorities said Thursday. The blast tore through the restaurant at around 8:40 p.m. Wednesday on a busy street in Yinchuan, the capital of the traditionally Muslim Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, as people gathered ahead of the Dragon Boat Festival, the official Xinhua News Agency said. The explosion left many people unconscious and they needed to be carried out of the shop, according to the online news

June 22, 2023
Cooking gas explosion kills 31 people at a barbecue restaurant in northwestern China
World

Tourist sub customer calls his 2021 dive to the Titanic a 'kamikaze operation'

As an international search continued for a vessel that disappeared after setting out for the underwater wreckage of the Titanic, a man who was one of the submersible company’s first customers characterized a dive he made to the site two years ago as a “kamikaze operation.” “You have to be a little bit crazy to do this sort of thing,” said Arthur Loibl, a 61-year-old retired businessman and adventurer from Germany. Loibl told The Associated Press on Wednesday that he first had the idea of seeing the Titanic wreckage while on a trip to the South Pole

June 22, 2023
Tourist sub customer calls his 2021 dive to the Titanic a 'kamikaze operation'

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