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Russia military push on eastern front prompts Ukraine to evacuate thousands of civilians

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 17:16:30 GMT

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Ukrainian authorities ordered a mandatory evacuation Thursday of nearly 12,000 civilians from 37 towns and villages in the eastern Kharkiv region, where Russian forces reportedly are making a concerted effort to punch through the front line.The local military administration in Kharkiv’s Kupiansk district said residents must comply with the evacuation order or sign a document saying they would stay at their own risk. Ukrainian Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Maliar had said the previous day that “the intensity of combat and enemy shelling is high” in the area.The city of Kupiansk and the territories around it were under Russian occupation until September 2022, when Ukrainian forces conducted a rapid offensive operation that dislodged the Kremlin’s forces from nearly the entire Kharkiv region.The retaking of those areas strengthened Ukraine’s arguments that its troops could deliver more stinging defeats to Russia with additional armament deliveries, which its ...

Prisoner uses sheets to escape from 5th floor of NYC hospital and hail taxi; he’s still at large

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 17:16:30 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — A prisoner receiving medical treatment escaped from a New York City hospital by tying sheets together, rappelling from a fifth-floor window and hailing a taxi, police said.The 44-year-old man escaped from Mount Sinai Beth Israel hospital in Manhattan shortly after 4:30 p.m. Wednesday and was still at large Thursday, a police spokesperson said.The man had been in custody since a July 31 arrest for drug possession and was brought to the hospital Aug. 4 for treatment of a medical problem, a spokesperson for the city Department of Correction said.He was taken to the bathroom for a shower and managed to escape out the window using bedsheets, police said. He rappelled to a rooftop below and from there made it to the street, where he got into a taxi.The police and correction departments were looking for him Thursday.Source

Today in Sports – The Green Bay Packers football club is founded by George Calhoun and Curly Lambeau

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 17:16:30 GMT

Aug. 111919 — Green Bay Packers football club founded by George Calhoun and Curly Lambeau – named after sponsor Indian Packing Company.1929 — Babe Ruth is the first MLB player to hit 500 home runs.1943 — Volo Song, driven by Ben White, wins the Hambletonian Stakes in the third heat.1948 — Demon Hanover, driven by Harrison Hoyt, wins the Hambletonian Stakes in straight heats.1974 — Lee Trevino beats Jack Nicklaus by one stroke to capture the PGA Championship.1979 — Peter Haughton wins his second International Trot at Roosevelt Raceway by driving Doublemint to victory.1984 — Carl Lewis duplicates Jesse Owens′ 1936 feat, winning his 4th Olympic gold medal as part of the US 4 x 100m relay team; world record (37.83).1984 — Britain’s Sebastian Coe sets an Olympic record in the 1,500 meter with a 3:32.53 winning time.1985 — Hubert Green beats defending champion Lee Trevino by two strokes to take the PGA Championship.1986 — Bob Tway’s bunker shot on the final hole gives him the PGA Ch...

Stock market today: Wall Street rallies after report raises hopes inflation will continue to cool

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 17:16:30 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — Stocks are rallying Thursday as Wall Street lets out a bit of an exhale following the latest update on inflation across the U.S.The S&P 500 was 1.1% higher in early trading and on track for just its second winning day in the last eight. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 366 points, or 1%, at 35,489, as of 9:50 a.m. Eastern time, and the Nasdaq composite was 1.3% higher.Thursday’s highly anticipated report showed U.S. consumers paid prices that were 3.2% higher in July than a year earlier. That’s a touch milder than the 3.3% inflation rate economists expected to see and down sharply from last summer’s peak above 9%. Beneath the surface, underlying trends for inflation were also within expectations.The readings bolstered hopes among investors that the Federal Reserve’s campaign to grind down inflation is progressing and that maybe it could even be done hiking interest rates. High rates undercut inflation by slowing the entire economy and hurting investment pr...

Today in Sports – Week Ahead, August 11 – August 17

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 17:16:30 GMT

Aug. 111919 — Green Bay Packers football club founded by George Calhoun and Curly Lambeau – named after sponsor Indian Packing Company.1929 — Babe Ruth is the first MLB player to hit 500 home runs.1943 — Volo Song, driven by Ben White, wins the Hambletonian Stakes in the third heat.1948 — Demon Hanover, driven by Harrison Hoyt, wins the Hambletonian Stakes in straight heats.1974 — Lee Trevino beats Jack Nicklaus by one stroke to capture the PGA Championship.1979 — Peter Haughton wins his second International Trot at Roosevelt Raceway by driving Doublemint to victory.1984 — Carl Lewis duplicates Jesse Owens′ 1936 feat, winning his 4th Olympic gold medal as part of the US 4 x 100m relay team; world record (37.83).1984 — Britain’s Sebastian Coe sets an Olympic record in the 1,500 meter with a 3:32.53 winning time.1985 — Hubert Green beats defending champion Lee Trevino by two strokes to take the PGA Championship.1986 — Bob Tway’s bunker shot on the final hole gives him the PGA Ch...

Expectations will be high at Marseille with a new coach and a strong squad

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 17:16:30 GMT

It’s been painful for Marseille fans to watch bitter rival Paris Saint-Germain collect league titles over the last decade to become the most successful club in domestic French soccer.For while Marseille still has bragging rights over PSG as the only French club to win the Champions League, it hasn’t won the domestic league title since 2010. PSG, meanwhile, has won it nine times in the last 11 years to set a French record with 11 titles. Saint-Etienne has 10 and Marseille has been stuck on nine for more than a decade. That’s an eternity for fans in the soccer-crazed southern seaport city who live and breathe the game every day. The passion at Stade Velodrome remains as strong as ever, in contrast to the somewhat lukewarm atmosphere at PSG’s Parc des Princes.Marseille looked like title contenders at certain times last season, before once again being hampered by inconsistency: Marseille won eight straight away games but struggled badly at home under former coach...

Philippine president suspends 22 land reclamation projects in Manila Bay after US airs concerns

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 17:16:30 GMT

MANILA, Philippines (AP) — Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has ordered an indefinite suspension of 22 major land reclamation projects in Manila Bay to allow a study of their environmental impact and legal compliance, an official said Thursday.Marcos’s order came after the United States expressed public concern over environmental damage from the projects and the involvement of a Chinese company which was blacklisted by Washington for its role in building militarized Chinese island bases in the South China Sea that further stoked tensions in the contested waters.The heavily fortified U.S. Embassy in Manila sits on the edge of the bay, which is popular for its golden sunsets but has long been notorious for pollution.“All of these projects are suspended at this point,” Environment Secretary Antonia Yulo Loyzaga said in a televised news conference. “All are under review.”A team of scientists including oceanographers, geologists and climate change experts is being formed t...

Montgomery Co. unemployment hits lowest level in decades, but there’s still work to be done

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 17:16:30 GMT

The unemployment rate across Montgomery County, Maryland, has reached a new 33-year low at 1.5%, according to numbers from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.The steady job growth has outpaced jurisdictions across the region.“Even in the face of the economic trials of the pandemic, we’re seeing indications that our local economy is fairing well and doing better than five years ago,” said County Executive Marc Elrich, during a media briefing.The average rate typically considered full employment sits around 3% to 4%.“We’ve set some notable marks,” he added.Bill Tompkins, president and CEO of the Montgomery County Economic Development Corporation, said the numbers suggest anyone looking for work is able to find it.“We think things are going to be pretty good this year, and they’ll be better next year so we’ll just keep on building our momentum,” he added.The county is home to 33,000 businesses, according to Elrich. He pointed to e...

US, UK, and Canada sanction Lebanon’s former central bank governor over corruption allegations

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 17:16:30 GMT

BEIRUT (AP) — The United States, United Kingdom, and Canada slapped sanctions Thursday on Lebanon’s embattled former central bank governor and a handful of close relatives and associates over allegations of corruption, the U.S. Treasury Department said.Riad Salameh, 73, ended his 30-year tenure on July 31 under a cloud of investigation and blame for his country’s historic economic crisis. France, Germany, and Luxembourg are investigating Salameh and close associates over alleged financial crimes, including illicit enrichment and the laundering of $330 million. Paris and Berlin issued Interpol notices on Salameh in May, though Lebanon does not hand over its citizens to foreign countries.“Salameh abused his position of power, likely in violation of Lebanese law, to enrich himself and his associates by funneling hundreds of millions of dollars through layered shell companies to invest in European real estate,” a U.S. Treasury Department statement said. The statement said th...

Biden will ask Congress for $13B to support Ukraine, $12B for disaster fund, an AP source says

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 17:16:30 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden on Thursday will ask Congress to provide more than $13 billion in emergency aid to Ukraine, another massive infusion of cash as the Russian invasion wears on and Ukraine pushes a counteroffensive against the Kremlin’s deeply entrenched forces, a person familiar with the matter told The Associated Press.The last such request from the White House, made in November, was met and then some — Congress approved more than what Biden had requested. But there’s a different dynamic this time. A political divide on the issue has grown, with the GOP-led House facing enormous pressure to demonstrate support for the party’s leader Donald Trump, who has been very skeptical of the war. And American support for the effort has been slowly softening.The White House also is expected to ask for $12 billion to replenish federal disaster funds, according to the person, who was not authorized to speak publicly about a request that had not yet been made...