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Blinken sees goals largely unfulfilled in Mideast trip, even as Israel pledges to protect civilians

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:18:14 GMT

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken returned to the Mideast this week pressing for agreements to extend the Gaza cease-fire, step up the release of hostages held by Hamas and limit Palestinian civilian casualties if fighting with Israel resumed. He left Friday with his goals largely unfulfilled. Blinken wrapped up his third Middle East tour since the Israel-Hamas war started in October with decidedly mixed results. He watched as the seven-day cease-fire agreement collapsed under new Hamas attacks and Israeli airstrikes. And, it remained uncertain if Israel would follow through on commitments to protect Palestinian civilians from military operations in the southern Gaza Strip, as he warned they should, or whether Hamas would engage in future hostage negotiations. Blinken arrived in Israel on Thursday with hopes to see a further extension of the cease-fire agreement under which Israel had halted most military operations in exchange for the release...

Trump attorney says trial during campaign would be ‘election interference’ if he is GOP nominee

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:18:14 GMT

ATLANTA (AP) — An attorney for former President Donald Trump said Friday it would amount to “election interference” if his client is the Republican nominee for president while on trial in Georgia in the months running up to the general election.Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee opened the door for discussion on trial timing while considering requests by two of the former president’s co-defendants to delay certain pretrial deadlines. But he said he didn’t plan to make any immediate decisions on a trial date.District Attorney Fani Willis last month asked that all defendants remaining in the case — currently Trump and 14 others — be tried together beginning Aug. 5. Prosecutors have previously estimated it would take them four months to present their case, not including jury selection. That would mean the trial would be underway during the final months of the election campaign.“Can you imagine the notion of the Republican nominee for president not being able to...

California cities and farms will get 10% of requested state water supplies when 2024 begins

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:18:14 GMT

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — California water agencies serving 27 million people will get 10% of the water they requested from state supplies to start 2024 due to a relatively dry fall, even though the state’s reservoirs are in good shape, state officials said Friday.The state’s Department of Water Resources said there was not much rain or snow in October and November. Those months are critical to developing the initial water allocation, which can be increased if conditions improve, officials said.“California’s water year is off to a relatively dry start,” Karla Nemeth, director of the Department of Water Resources, said in a statement. “While we are hopeful that this El Niño pattern will generate wet weather, this early in the season we have to plan with drier conditions in mind.” El Niño is a periodic and naturally occurring climate event that shifts weather patterns across the globe. It can cause extreme weather conditions ranging from drought to floodi...

December concert calendar: 10 of the best Chicago area shows

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:18:14 GMT

CHICAGO — Winter is here but venues around the area offer a reprieve to warm up and rock out. Here's 10 of the best shows this month.12/1 — Mavis Staples, Northwestern's Cahn AuditoriumHometown hero Mavis Staples crosses Howard Street into Evanston Friday night for a concert to benefit the James B. Moran Center for Youth Advocacy. While keeping a busy live schedule, she seems never to neglect the area - with her fourth show in 2023 Friday night at Northwestern.Listen in: You Are Not AloneNEW YORK, NEW YORK - OCTOBER 13: Mavis Staples performs onstage at the Hudson River Park Friends 2022 Gala at Pier Sixty at Chelsea Piers on October 13, 2022 in New York City. (Photo by Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images for Hudson River Park Friends)12/1-12/3 — Angel Olsen, Thalia HallWatching an artist evolve is special, especially one who is not afraid to bounce between genres. That's exactly what Angel Olsen has been doing - shifting from indie to more of a country folk sound. "Big Time" was her f...

Jussie Smollett conviction upheld by appeals court

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:18:14 GMT

(The Hill) — An Illinois appeals court has upheld actor Jussie Smollett’s disorderly conduct conviction in an opinion filed Friday.A three-panel judge affirmed Smollett’s conviction in a 2-1 ruling. His lawyers could appeal the decision and bring it to the state Supreme Court.If the Illinois Supreme Court does take up or reverse the appellate court's decision, the actor must serve the sentence that was handed down in March 2022.The appeals court panel heard arguments from Smollett’s attorneys in September, who said his conviction should be thrown out.In 2019, Smollett claimed he was the victim of a hate crime in Chicago. The actor, known for his role on the TV series “Empire,” is Black and gay.He claimed he was attacked on the street by two men in Chicago who yelled racist, homophobic and pro-Trump remarks and put a noose around his neck. It turned out that Smollett had paid two brothers, Abimbola and Olabinjo Osundairo, to stage the attack, prosecutors said.He was later charged wit...

What is the 'card draining' scam? Beware ahead of holidays

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:18:14 GMT

(WTAJ/NEXSTAR) — It's the latest trick scammers are using to steal your money via gift cards and you might not know until it's too late: it's called "card draining." Police in eastern Pennsylvania have put out a warning to all Americans heading into the holiday season after 100 different gift cards, including Visa and Apple cards, were reportedly drained at a local grocery store. But the problem has been seen all across the U.S., including multiple incidents in Colorado this summer. Disney+ unveils new subscriber-only perks for the holiday season What is card draining? Card draining is just that. They drain the gift card. But how do they drain a gift card that isn't activated and has no money on it?Short answer: They don't. This scam involves the culprits taking cards off displays and carefully getting the information from the back of the gift card before putting them back. From there, they wait. These scammers use a little patience and wait for these cards to be activated and mon...

Oak Hill Parkway Touch-a-Truck and car seat check this weekend

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:18:14 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) -- Nearly half of all children are not properly buckled in their car seat. On Saturday, Dec. 2, you'll have an opportunity to make sure your kid doesn't fall into that category.At a Texas Department of Transportation community event, there will be an update on the Oak Hill Parkway Construction progress, a car seat check and construction and emergency vehicles on display.Since the last time KXAN checked in on the Oak Hill Parkway construction in southwest Austin, there have been some big changes. TxDOT wants families to check out equipment at major project "One of the big things that we've done here recently, earlier this month, we opened the eastbound U.S. 290 main lanes. So you're gonna get a taste of what the Oak Hill Parkway project is going to be like when it's completed," TxDOT spokesperson Bradley Wheelis said.It should be completed in early 2026, but, in the meantime, it does mean heavy traffic through the U.S. Highway 290 and Highway 71 corridor, which someti...

Feds remind employers, workers of holiday safety after Texas man's death

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:18:14 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) -- As December kicks off the holiday season, the federal government would like to remind employers and workers to practice safety in the workplace, according to a news release from the U.S. Department of Labor.This comes as a "sad reminder" after 40-year-old Carlos Anaya-Ortiz "suffered electrocution as he stood on wet, muddy ground and connected holiday lights to a homemade extension cord on Nov. 10, 2022" in McKinney, the release said.According to an investigation into Anaya-Ortiz's death, the employer was "cited for exposing workers to electrical and fall hazards."“While employees celebrate during the holidays, employers must pay close attention to the safety hazards workers face atop ladders or roofs mounting decorations, handling customer orders in busy warehouses and crowded retail stores, and working outdoors as winter approaches,” OSHA Regional Administrator Eric S. Harbin in Dallas said in the release. “We encourage all employers to stress the importance of wo...

Is Wild star Kirill Kaprizov having fun yet?

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:18:14 GMT

Just as the Wild aren’t ready to declare their troubles over after ending a seven-game losing streak with a pair of impressive victories, Kirill Kaprizov isn’t prepared to say he’s back his old self.It’s not that Kaprizov hasn’t been engaged all season; he had 16 points in the first 17 games. It was more that he looked a little lost on the ice, never quite sure what his next move should be — a far cry from the young man who set franchise records with 47 goals and 108 points in 2021-22, his first full NHL season.“There needs to be a little bit more fun — in my eyes,” he said after returning from the Wild’s NHL Global Series games in Sweden last month. “Just have fun, play loose.”If he does that, he said, “the goals will come.”Well, are we having fun yet?“Yeah, I think so, the last couple of games,” Kaprizov said after recording a goal and assist in the Wild’s convincing 6-1 victory over the Predators Thursday night in Nashville. “A little bit better, yeah. Making more plays, better s...

Woodbury day care owner’s husband gets 18 years for child sex abuse

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:18:14 GMT

The husband of a childcare provider in Woodbury convicted of having sexual contact with two young girls in his spouse’s care was sentenced Friday to 18 years in prison.Norberto Perez, 44, of Woodbury, was sentenced in Washington County District Court by Judge Siv Mjanger.Norberto Perez (Courtesy of the Washington County Sheriff’s Office)Perez was charged in May 2022 with two counts of first-degree criminal sexual conduct and two counts of second-degree sexual conduct. The victims, who were 7 and 10 at the time, were cared for by Perez’s wife at their home on Sandlewood Road in Woodbury, police said.According to the criminal complaint, Perez would lead the girls to the basement of the house and molest them. One of the girls told police that Perez told her “not to tell anyone” and that it was “their little secret.” The other said Perez told her it was “our secret.”When one of the girls told her parents about the abuse, her parents reached out to other parents whose children were...