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Palestinians rush to buy food and struggle under strikes as Israel readies possible ground operation

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:30:47 GMT

JERUSALEM (AP) — Palestinians lined up outside bakeries and grocery stores in Gaza on Thursday after spending the night surrounded by the ruins of pulverized neighborhoods darkened by a near-total power outage. Israel launched new airstrikes and said it was preparing for a possible ground invasion.International aid groups warned that the death toll in Gaza could mount after Israel stopped all deliveries of food, water, fuel and electricity and the tiny enclave’s crossing with Egypt closed. The war — which was ignited by a bloody and wide-ranging assault on Israel by Hamas militants — has already claimed at least 2,500 lives on both sides.Lt. Col. Richard Hecht, an Israeli military spokesman, told reporters Thursday that forces “are preparing for a ground maneuver if decided,” but that political leaders have not yet ordered one. A ground offensive in Gaza, whose 2.3 million residents are densely packed into a sliver of land only 40 kilometers (25 ...

Former agent of East Germany’s Stasi agency is charged over the 1974 border killing of a Polish man

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:30:47 GMT

BERLIN (AP) — A former member of communist East Germany’s secret police has been charged with murder over the killing of a Polish national at a border crossing in divided Berlin in 1974, prosecutors said Thursday.The indictment against the 79-year-old man, whose name wasn’t released, was filed at the state court in the German capital.It relates to an incident on March 29, 1974, in which a 38-year-old Polish man took a fake bomb to the Polish Embassy to try to force an unhindered exit to West Berlin, prosecutors said in a statement.East Germany’s secret police, the Stasi, allegedly decided to feign authorizing the man’s exit. Its employees provided him with exit documents and accompanied him to a border crossing at the Friedrichstrasse railway station in East Berlin, prosecutors said.They said that the suspect, age 31 at the time, was tasked with rendering the Polish man “harmless.” After the Pole had passed the final checkpoint, the suspect allegedly shot him...

Grand National to reduce number of horses to 34 and soften fences in bid to make famous race safer

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:30:47 GMT

LONDON (AP) — The Grand National is implementing a series of significant changes, taking effect from next year, in an effort to make the world’s most famous steeplechase safer for horses and jockeys.They include reducing the field from 40 horses — the size since 1984 — to 34, softening the fences by using foam and rubber toe boards, and moving the first fence closer to the start to stop horses building up too much speed.The race will also start earlier in the day, so the course stays as soft as possible, and the horses will set off from a standing start.Sixteen horses have died in the Grand National since the turn of the century. The race, which takes place over 30 fences and typically in front of 70,000 spectators at Aintree and a global TV audience, is among the biggest occasions on the British sporting calendar and is also regarded as one of the most dangerous horse races in the world because of the size of the fences.“I believe that a competitive, fair and safe Randox Grand Nati...

Armenia wants a UN court to impose measures aimed at protecting rights of Nagorno-Karabakh Armenians

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:30:47 GMT

THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — Armenia urged the United Nations top court on Thursday to impose new interim orders on Azerbaijan to prevent what the leader of Armenia’s legal team called “ethnic cleansing” of the Nagorno-Karabakh region by Azerbaijan from becoming irreversible.Armenia is asking judges at the International Court of Justice for 10 “provisional measures” aimed at protecting the rights of ethnic Armenians from the Nagorno-Karabakh region that Azerbaijan reclaimed last month following a swift military operation.In a 24-hour campaign that began on Sept. 19, the Azerbaijani army routed the region’s undermanned and outgunned Armenian forces, forcing them to capitulate. The separatist government then agreed to disband itself by the end of the year. More than 100,000 ethnic Armenians fled Nagorno-Karabakh.“Nothing other than targeted and unequivocal provisional measures protecting the rights of ethnic Armenians of Nagorno-Karabakh will suffice to prevent the ethnic clean...

Former Formula One boss Bernie Ecclestone pleads guilty to fraud

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:30:47 GMT

LONDON (AP) — Former Formula One boss Bernie Ecclestone admitted fraud at a court hearing Thursday after prosecutors charged him with failing to declare millions of dollars held in a trust in Singapore to Britain’s government.The 92-year-old billionaire, who wore a dark suit, said “I plead guilty” at Southwark Crown Court in central London. Ecclestone headed Formula One racing and controlled the sport for for four decades from the 1970s to 2017, when he stepped down as chief executive and Liberty Media took over the series.Prosecutors allege he failed to declare a trust in Singapore with a bank account containing around $650 million when he was asked about any trusts abroad that he was involved in.They say that Ecclestone claimed he had set up “only a single trust” in favor of his three daughters, and that he was “not the settler nor beneficiary of any trust in or outside the U.K.” Prosecutors say he acted “dishonestly” and intended to make a gain from the claims.“He now accepts tha...

Finnish intelligence says Russia views Finland as a hostile nation due to its NATO membership

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:30:47 GMT

HELSINKI (AP) — Finland’s relationship with Russia has significantly deteriorated due to the Nordic country’s membership in NATO and over Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and related sanctions, and Moscow now views its western neighbor as a hostile country, the Finnish Security and Intelligence Service said Thursday.The agency, known by the abbreviation SUPO, said in a national security review that Russia was “prepared to take measures against Finland” and was likely to continue influencing operations and undermining bilateral links.After decades of military non-alignment, Finland — a European Union nation of 5.5 million people that shares a long border with Russia — became NATO’s 31st member on April 4. Moscow’s hostility toward Helsinki is evident in Russian media’s negative coverage of Finland and in Russia’s decision to close Finland’s consulate general in St. Petersburg this month, among other ways, SUPO said.“Russia currently remains focused on the war in Ukraine...

Musk’s X has taken down hundreds of Hamas-linked accounts, CEO says

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:30:47 GMT

LONDON (AP) — Elon Musk’s social media platform X has removed hundreds of Hamas-linked accounts and taken down or labeled thousands of pieces of content since the militant group’s attack on Israel, according to the CEO of the company formerly known as Twitter. Linda Yaccarino on Thursday outlined efforts by X to get a handle on illegal content flourishing on the platform. She was responding to a warning from a top European Union official, who requested information on how X is complying during the Israel-Hamas war with tough new EU digital rules aimed at cleaning up social media platforms. “So far since the start of the conflict X has identified and removed hundreds of Hamas-affiliated accounts from the platform,” Yaccarino said in a letter posted on X. The platform is “proportionately and effectively assessing and addressing identified fake and manipulated content during this constantly evolving and shifting crisis,” she wrote in response to the request from ...

Stock market today: Global shares rise with eyes on prices, war in the Middle East

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:30:47 GMT

TOKYO (AP) — Global shares mostly rose Thursday as investors awaited the release of U.S. consumer price data and kept a cautious watch on the war between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas. France’s CAC 40 added 0.4% in early trading to 7,161.62. Germany’s DAX rose 0.5% to 15,541.01, while Britain’s FTSE 100 added 0.7% to 7,672.18. The futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the S&P 500 were up 0.2%.Markets have been mostly struggling since the summer as longer-term yields shoot higher in the U.S. bond market, weighing on prices for all kinds of investments. Some relief has come this week, and yields have eased after officials at the Federal Reserve suggested they may be done raising their main overnight interest rate.A report on U.S. consumer prices is due later Thursday, a day after a report on wholesale inflation came in hotter than expected. Economists said that may not be enough to force the Fed to raise its main interest rate again.F...

UEFA postpones Israel’s game in Kosovo in European qualifying because players cannot travel abroad

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:30:47 GMT

NYON, Switzerland (AP) — UEFA has postponed Israel’s European Championship qualifying game against host Kosovo on Sunday.The decision by European soccer’s governing body — following Hamas’ surprise attack — adds to a fixture backlog.UEFA said in a statement Thursday that the game in Pristina cannot be played “because the Israeli authorities currently do not allow their national team to travel abroad.”Israel is now two games behind schedule in a tight qualifying group where it is competing with Switzerland and Romania for the top-two spots. Two teams advance to the Euro 2024 tournament in Germany.Israel was scheduled to host group leader Switzerland on Thursday in Tel Aviv and that game was postponed late Sunday. It will now be played Nov. 15 though it is unclear if Israel can safely host games.Israel now is due to play three Euro 2024 qualifiers in the one-week international break next month designed for just two games.A home game for Israel against Romania on Nov. 18 — intend...

Chinese-born journalist thanks Australia for her freedom after 3 years in detention for spying

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:30:47 GMT

CANBERRA, Australia (AP) — A Chinese-born journalist credited the Australian government for her return to Australia “in one piece” after her three-year detention in China in an espionage case that strained bilateral ties.Cheng Lei’s comments broadcast on Thursday challenged Beijing’s version that she was deported this week under normal judicial procedures without political considerations.The 48-year-old former Chinese state television anchor spoke to Prime Minister Anthony Albanese by phone from Melbourne Airport on Wednesday after her arrival from Beijing.“Hello, prime minister. It’s because of you and all the team at DFAT that I’m able to make it here in one piece,” Cheng said in a video recording released by Australia’s Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade.Foreign Minister Penny Wong welcomed Cheng to Melbourne, where Cheng’s two children, 11 and 14, have been raised by their grandmother. Wong’s staff handed Cheng the phone to speak with Alb...