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German police raid locations across the country in connection with smuggling of Syrian migrants

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:57:29 GMT

BERLIN (AP) — Police in Germany found more than 100 Syrian citizens inside apartments and other buildings that were searched Tuesday in connection with the suspected smuggling of migrants, German news agency dpa reported. More than 350 German federal police officers searched locations as part of an investigation. The Syrians allegedly were brought into Germany without holding legal residency documents, dpa said. Police executed five arrest warrants, three in the northern town of Stade and two in the western town of Gladbeck. All five arrested people were Syrian asylum-seekers already living in Germany, the news agency said. The Syrian migrants had to pay them 3,000 to 7,000 euros ($3,170- 7,400) to be smuggled into Germany. The suspects then bought gold with the money, dpa said. The raids were ordered by federal police at Frankfurt airport on suspicion of gang and commercial smuggling of foreigners, the news agency reported.The focus of the raids was on cities and towns in northern ...

Pakistani raid on a militant hideout near Afghanistan leaves 3 militants dead, the military says

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:57:29 GMT

ISLAMABAD (AP) — Pakistani troops raided a suspected militant hideout in a former Pakistani Taliban stronghold near the border with Afghanistan, triggering a shootout that killed three militants, the military said Tuesday.A militant commander was among those killed in the shootout late on Monday in Khyber, a district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, according to a military statement. The military did not provide any additional details, saying only the targeted militants had attacked Pakistani troops in the past.The Pakistani Taliban — also known as Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan or TTP — are a separate group but allied with the Afghan Taliban, who two years ago seized Afghanistan as U.S. and NATO troops were in the final stages of their pullout from the country after 20 years of war. The Taliban takeover of Afghanistan has emboldened the Pakistani Taliban, who have stepped up attacks against police and troops. The Associated Press

Researchers have verified 1,329 hunger deaths in Ethiopia’s Tigray region since the cease-fire there

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:57:29 GMT

NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — Researchers say they have verified 1,329 deaths from hunger in Ethiopia’s northern Tigray region since a cease-fire ended a two-year conflict there in November.A study by local health authorities and Mekele University in the regional capital found that hunger is now the main cause of death in Tigray, accounting for more than 68% of deaths investigated by the researchers.The study is based on a household census conducted by health workers from August 15-29 in nine subdistricts of Tigray and 53 camps for internally displaced people.Tigray in total has 88 subdistricts and 643 displacement camps, so the number of hunger deaths across the region is almost certainly far higher.One factor is the suspension of food aid by the United States and United Nations after the discovery in March of a huge scheme to steal humanitarian grain in Tigray. The pause was extended to the rest of Ethiopia in June after the theft was found to be nationwide.Ethiopia’s government wants the...

Daily horoscope for September 26, 2023

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:57:29 GMT

Moon Alert: Caution! Avoid shopping or important decisions from 8 a.m. until 8:30 p.m. EDT today (5 a.m. until 5:30 p.m. PDT). After that, the Moon moves from Aquarius into Pisces.Happy Birthday for Tuesday, Sept. 26, 2023:You’re a perfectionist, which is why you are persevering, goal-oriented and hardworking. You can amaze others with your accomplishments. This is a year of service, especially to family. This means it’s important to take care of yourself so you can be a resource to others. Is it time for a makeover?ARIES(March 21-April 19) ★★★This is the classic day for a friend or a group to do something that surprises you or catches you off guard. Be prepared for anything. Meanwhile, most of this day is a Moon Alert, which means agree to nothing important! Restrict spending to food and gas. Stay chill. Tonight: Solitude.TAURUS(April 20-May 20) ★★Be careful, because today, your dealings with bosses, parents, teachers, the police or anyone in authority will be unpredict...

UNGA78: EU wraps up a week of intense meetings on global issues

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:57:29 GMT

The EU has concluded a week of discussions on the most pressing issues that affect our planet together with world leaders, who gathered in New York for the high-level week of the 78th session of the UN General Assembly.High Representative/Vice President Josep Borrell (pictured) hosted leaders from the Pacific Small Island Developing States. You can watch his opening remarks here.President Ursula von der Leyen delivered a keynote speech at the Global Citizen NOW climate session.Executive Vice-President Šefčovič attended the COP28 Incoming Presidency's Ministerial Consultation on the Global Stocktake. You can read his remarks here. He also participated in the 3rd High-level Dialogue on Building a 1.5C-aligned Energy Transition.High Representative Borrell delivered a speech on behalf of the EU at the Preparatory Ministerial Meeting for the Summit of the Future. In the afternoon, he addressed the UN Security Council on the situation in Nagorno-Karabakh. You can read the full speech here...

Three-bedroom home in San Ramon sells for $1.6 million

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:57:29 GMT

509 Santander Drive – Google Street ViewA spacious house located in the 500 block of Santander Drive in San Ramon has new owners. The 2,106-square-foot property, built in 1979, was sold on Aug. 21, 2023. The $1,600,000 purchase price works out to $760 per square foot. The layout of this two-story house includes three bedrooms and three bathrooms. Inside, there is a fireplace. The property is equipped with forced air heating and central A/C. In addition, the house features an attached two-car garage, providing ample room for vehicles and storage needs.Additional houses have recently changed hands nearby:A 2,070-square-foot home on the 500 block of Santander Drive in San Ramon sold in July 2022, for $1,725,000, a price per square foot of $833. The home has 4 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms.In August 2022, a 2,718-square-foot home on Marsh Drive in San Ramon sold for $1,925,000, a price per square foot of $708. The home has 4 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms.On Burgos Court, San Ramon, in October 202...

New Nagorno-Karabakh crisis as fuel depot blast kills at least 20

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:57:29 GMT

GORIS, Armenia — An explosion on Monday night at a fuel depot used by civilians fleeing Nagorno-Karabakh killed at least 20 people and left hundreds more injured.In a statement, Gegham Stepanyan, the human rights defender of the unrecognized Karabakh Armenian administration, said that “the number of injured exceeds 200” and “the health condition of the majority is severe or extremely severe. The medical capacities of Nagorno-Karabakh are not enough.” As part of an agreement with Azerbaijan, the Armenian Ministry of Health on Tuesday confirmed that a team of Armenian doctors had been given permission to fly in to Stepanakert to evacuate the wounded. Meanwhile, the Azerbaijani government says it has dispatched an ambulance containing burn dressings, sterile gloves, medicines and other essential supplies.Local authorities were already struggling to cope with hundreds of people wounded after Azerbaijan launched a military offensive to capture the region last Tues...

2 explosions ripped through dwellings in Sweden. At least one is reportedly connected to a gang feud

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:57:29 GMT

STOCKHOLM (AP) — Two powerful explosions ripped through dwellings in central Sweden, injuring at least three people and damaging buildings, with bricks and window sections left spread outside. Late Monday, an explosion occurred in Hasselby, a suburb of the capital, Stockholm. In the early hours of Tuesday, a blast in Linkoping, some 175 kilometers (110 miles) to the southwest, ripped the facade off a three-story building, leaving debris strewn across a parking area. It was not known whether the blasts were related to each other. Swedish radio said Tuesday that the explosion in Linkoping was connected to an ongoing feud between criminal gangs, a growing problem in Sweden with drive-by shootings and bombings. Two gangs, one led by a Swedish-Turkish dual national who lives in Turkey, the other by his former lieutenant, are reportedly fighting over drugs and weapons. So far this year, there have been 261 shootings, 36 people have died and 73 were wounded. The count doesn’t include...

Column: Ryder Cup is in America’s head. But it’s in Europe’s blood

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:57:29 GMT

GUIDONIA MONTECELIO, Italy (AP) — The Americans have won more majors. The Europeans have won more Ryder Cups.There’s really no connection, except that it might explain why the Americans always seem to be the favorite on paper, and Team Europe has more often left the Ryder Cup with possession of the 17-inch gold trophy since they were invited to this raucous party in 1979.It doesn’t mean the Americans don’t care. That’s an insult to think otherwise. But an argument can be made the Ryder Cup means more to Europe as a whole.“In America, it’s in our head. We desperately want to win,” Paul Azinger said. “But over there, it’s in their blood. It’s part of the fabric of their souls. It’s what they deem as the most relevant thing in their life.”Consider the many Europeans whose careers were defined by the Ryder Cup:— Ian Poulter, whose Ryder Cup legacy was cemented when he birdied his last five holes at Medinah in a fourballs match (Rory McIlroy was along for th...

Ukrainian boat captain found guilty in Hungary for the 2019 Danube collision that killed at least 27

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:57:29 GMT

BUDAPEST, Hungary (AP) — The captain of a river cruise boat that collided with another vessel in Hungary’s capital in 2019, killing at least 27 people most of them South Korean tourists, was found guilty on Tuesday of negligence leading to a fatal mass catastrophe and sentenced to five years in prison. Judge Leona Nemeth with the Pest Central District Court found that the negligence of the Ukrainian captain, Yuriy Chaplinsky, had caused his river cruise boat, the Viking Sigyn, to collide with the tourist boat Hableany (Mermaid) from behind, causing it to sink into the Danube River within seconds.The court acquitted Chaplinsky of 35 counts of failure to render aid. He may appeal. The collision occurred May 29, 2019, when the Hableany, carrying mostly the South Korean tourists, sank after being struck beneath Budapest’s Margit Bridge by the much larger Viking Sigyn. Seven South Koreans were rescued from the water in the heavy rain following the collision, and 27 people wer...