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Chinese president signals more pandas will be coming to the United States

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:57:52 GMT

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Chinese President Xi Jinping signaled late Wednesday that China will send new pandas to the United States, calling them “envoys of friendship between the Chinese and American peoples.”“We are ready to continue our cooperation with the United States on panda conservation, and do our best to meet the wishes of the Californians so as to deepen the friendly ties between our two peoples,” Xi said during a dinner speech with business leaders.The gesture came at the end of a day in which Xi and President Joe Biden held their first face to face meeting in a year and pledged to try to reduce tensions. Xi did not share additional details on when or where pandas might be provided but appeared to suggest the next pair of pandas are most likely to come to California, probably San Diego.The bears have long been the symbol of the U.S.-China friendship since Beijing gifted a pair of pandas to the National Zoo in Washington in 1972, ahead of the normalization of bilateral relati...

Their families wiped out, grieving Palestinians in Gaza ask why

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:57:52 GMT

KHAN YOUNIS, Gaza Strip (AP) — The night a blast struck his family’s home in the Gaza Strip, Ahmed al-Naouq was more than 2,000 miles away but he still jolted awake, consumed with inexplicable panic. He reached for his cellphone to find that a friend had written — and then deleted — a message. Al-Naouq called him from London. The words that spilled from the other end of the line landed like world-shattering blows: Airstrike. Everyone killed. Four nights later, Ammar al-Butta was startled from sleep in the southern Gaza city of Khan Younis when the wall of his bedroom collapsed over him. A missile had pierced his top-floor apartment and exploded one floor below.He lurched over the rubble, shining the light of his cellphone into the wreckage, calling out to his 16 relatives.“Anyone there?” he cried. There was only silence.Entire generations of Palestinian families in the besieged Gaza Strip — from great-grandparents to infants only weeks old — have been killed in airstrikes in t...

Blaze at a coal mine company building in northern China kills 25 and injures dozens

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:57:52 GMT

BEIJING (AP) — A fire burned in a coal company building Thursday in a northern Chinese city, killing 25 people and injuring a few dozen more.The building belongs to Yongju Coal Company and is in Lvliang city in northern Shanxi province, a major coal-producing region, according to state broadcaster CCTV. District officials issued a statement saying rescue and emergency services were at the scene. They evacuated 63 people, though it is unclear if the 25 dead were among that figure. By Thursday afternoon, the fire had been controlled and rescue work was ongoing, the local fire department told CCTV. Those injured were being treated in the hospital. The blaze appeared to have started in a building with offices and dormitories and not where coal was being mined.Coal mine accidents are not uncommon in China, though the government has been working on improving safety.___AP researcher Wanqing Chen in Beijing contributed to this report.The Associated Press

European Commission successfully issues €8 billion in its last syndicated transaction of 2023

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:57:52 GMT

The European Commission, which issues EU-Bonds on behalf of the EU, has raised a further €8 billion of EU-Bonds in its 11th syndicated transaction for 2023. The dual tranche transaction consisted of a new €5bn, 5-year bond due on 5 December 2028 and a €3bn tap of the NextGenerationEU Green Bond maturing on 4 February 2048.The deal received strong interest from investors, who placed bids totalling over €66bn for the new 5-year bond and over €70bn for the 24-year NGEU Green Bond. This equals oversubscription rates of approximately 13 times and 24 times, respectively.The transaction brings the total volume of NextGenerationEU green bond issuances to €47.2bn, with proceeds being used to finance green projects from the member states' national Recovery and Resilience plans (RRPs) – the roadmaps to spending under NextGenerationEU. NGEU green bond issuances are backed by a significant pool of eligible projects and are closely calibrated to member states' reported green expenditures, which a...

Arrest made in killing of 27-year-old woman in Orange County

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:57:52 GMT

As hundreds of people gathered on the San Clemente Pier Wednesday night to honor and remember a 27-year-old woman found dead under suspicious circumstances over the weekend in Laguna Beach, police announced the arrest of a 26-year-old man in connection with the case.  Tatum Goodwin’s body, which showed signs of trauma consistent with homicide, according to police, was discovered on Nov. 12 around 8:20 a.m. by a construction worker who called the Laguna Beach Police Department.  The discovery was made in an alleyway near the 200 block of Ocean Avenue, behind Carmelita’s restaurant where she had worked as an assistant manager for four years.  Laguna Beach resident Dino Rojas-Moreno was identified as a suspect in Goodwin’s death and was arrested on Nov. 15 with the assistance of the Newport Beach and Anaheim police departments, an LBPD news release stated.  Dino Rojoas-Moreno, 26, of Laguna Beach was arrested in connection with the homicide of 27-year-old Tatum Goodwin on Nov...

SoCal woman found with thousands of dollars worth of stolen luxury handbags

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:57:52 GMT

A Southern California woman was arrested she was allegedly found with thousands of dollars worth of stolen luxury handbags.The suspect was identified as Karla Sunceri, 51, a Mission Hills resident, according to the Los Angeles Police Department.Sunceri was identified as the alleged operator of a crime fence involving high-end designer handbags, police said.A “fence” is defined by police as "an individual or group of individuals who purchase stolen retail merchandise from those who commit smash-and-grab robberies and organized retail thefts and then sells the stolen merchandise at seemingly legitimate businesses, swap meets, or online.”On Nov. 1, Sunceri was tracked down and a search warrant was issued at her home in the 15700 block of McKeever Street.During the search, authorities discovered over 50 stolen designer purses in the suspect’s home. Most of the stolen luxury handbags were taken in residential burglaries throughout Southern California, police said.Photos of the seized han...

Antioch man found shot to death Wednesday afternoon

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:57:52 GMT

ANTIOCH – A 43-year-old Antioch man was found shot to death Wednesday in the city, police said.Related ArticlesCrime and Public Safety | Lake Merritt homicide: Oakland police seek tips on how body ended stuffed in suitcase Crime and Public Safety | Man charged in Fremont shooting that left one dead, one wounded Crime and Public Safety | Man shot while riding in vehicle on East Bay freeway Crime and Public Safety | Witness with ‘great hearing’ now charged in murder case where a Baby Yoda doll and AC Transit bus provided key evidence Crime and Public Safety | After judge’s disqualification, double-murder case against East Bay man returns to Fairfield courtroom Officers were called to the railroad tracks between A Street and Cavallo Road just after 2 p.m. for a report of a person who was possibly dead, Antioch police Lt. Rick Martin said in a news release. They arrived to find a man with a gunshot wound.Par...

Ex-FCI Dublin correctional officer gets 8 years for sexually abusing inmates

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:57:52 GMT

DUBLIN – A former correctional officer was sentenced Wednesday to eight years in prison for sexually abusing inmates and making false statements while he was employed at the federal women’s prison in Dublin, the U.S. Department of Justice said.Related ArticlesCrime and Public Safety | Lake Merritt homicide: Oakland police seek tips on how body ended stuffed in suitcase Crime and Public Safety | Man charged in Fremont shooting that left one dead, one wounded Crime and Public Safety | Man shot while riding in vehicle on East Bay freeway Crime and Public Safety | Witness with ‘great hearing’ now charged in murder case where a Baby Yoda doll and AC Transit bus provided key evidence Crime and Public Safety | After judge’s disqualification, double-murder case against East Bay man returns to Fairfield courtroom Andrew Jones, 36, of Clovis, pleaded guilty on Aug. 17 to six counts of sexual abuse of a ward involv...

Celebrity chef delivers food to seniors during APEC

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:57:52 GMT

SAN FRANCISCO (KRON) – APEC-related road closures have been keeping many people from getting to work in San Francisco, but they’ve also been keeping some older adults from getting their daily meals. The meal sites in the city’s SoMa neighborhood have had to close because of the tight security measures, but more than 150 seniors got to enjoy warm meals today thanks to a celebrity chef.The housing for these seniors is actually right near the Moscone Center, which is where most of the APEC activity is happening. With all the barriers and road closures in place, it’s making it challenging for these seniors to get around. That inspired celebrity chef Kathy Fang to step up. Fang and her team made their way to more than 150 hungry seniors in SoMa. APEC updates: Xi Jinping supporters bused in for Biden-Xi demonstration “They come to our meals program every day, so just like with COVID, if we stop then they get worried,” said Anni Chung, CEO of San Francisco’s Self-Help for the Elderl...

San Mateo hospital goes into lockdown after altercation involving armed suspect

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:57:52 GMT

(KRON) -- A San Mateo hospital went into lockdown Tuesday night after a man threw a firework in the direction of the building and threatened to kill a security guard, the San Mateo Police Department said. SMPD responded to San Mateo Medical Center, located at 222 West 39th Ave., after a 911 caller said she heard a loud "bang" near the hospital. A police investigation revealed a suspect, later identified as Miguel Boch-Chamale, was asked to leave by hospital security after he tried to enter the premises, police said. Burglars crash vehicle into Oakland Trader Joe’s store: police When in a parking lot, Boch-Chamale used a knife to threaten a security guard's life, police said. The suspect ran at the security guard, and the guard fired his gun into the air, per SMPD. After this, Boch-Chamale ran away and threw what was later determined to be an exploding firework at the security guard. SMPD officers found Boch-Chamale at about 11:50 p.m. in the area of 36th Avenue and Colegrove Stre...