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Canada names new ambassador to Armenia amid Nagorno-Karabakh tensions

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 13:15:22 GMT

OTTAWA — Canada’s government has announced the ambassador who is to helm a new embassy in Armenia at a time of escalating military conflict in neighbouring Azerbaijan.Career diplomat Andrew Turner will be posted to Yerevan, where Canada is set to open an embassyas soon as next month, as the Liberals try to form closer ties with countries moving away from Russia’s orbit.Turner’s background primarily involves postings in the Middle East, though he has also helped shape Ottawa’s response to tensions between Armenia and Azerbaijan.Canada has a large Armenian diaspora, and the Liberals have made a point of raising issues related to Armenia in the House of Commons.In April 2022, ambassador to the European Union Stéphane Dion, who is also a former foreign affairs minister, issued a report on how Canada can better support Armenia’s “fragile” democracy.The report, weeks after Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine, argued the country’...

Jury selection opens in terrorism trial of extended family members dating to 2018 New Mexico raid

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 13:15:22 GMT

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — Jury selection began Monday in federal court as members of an extended family confronted kidnapping and terrorism charges stemming from the search for a missing 3-year-old boy by agents who raided a squalid New Mexico encampment in 2018.The boy’s badly decomposed remains were eventually found in an underground tunnel at the compound on the outskirts of Amalia near the Colorado line. Authorities allege the family engaged in firearms and tactical training in preparation for attacks against the government, tied to an apparent belief that the boy would be resurrected as Jesus Christ and provide instructions.An exact cause of death was never determined amid accusations that the boy, who was sickly, had been deprived of crucial medication linked to disabilities. Federal prosecutors opted for kidnapping charges.The two men and two women on trial have pleaded not guilty to charges of conspiring to support planned attacks on U.S. law enforcement officers, milit...

At least 6 people are dead and 12 missing after a landslide in Guatemala sweeps homes into river

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 13:15:22 GMT

GUATEMALA CITY (AP) — Heavy rains set off a landslide in Guatemala’s capital early Monday sweeping several humble homes into a river and leaving at least six people dead and 12 missing, including 10 minors.Guatemala’s National Disaster Reduction Coordinator said in a statement Monday that the death toll had risen to six, including a young girl, along with 12 people missing. The 5-year-old girl was recovered by firefighters partially buried in debris and mud some 3 miles (5 kilometers) down the Naranjo river.The landslide swept away six homes and the families who lived in them around 2 a.m. Around 5 a.m. the firefighters announced they would start a search.Landslides are a constant threat during Guatemala’s rainy season, which extends to November. There are few controls on where people build their homes, especially in poor settlements, putting them at greater risk.Images provided by rescuers showed a long path of the landslide and evidence of domestic life strewn along the rive...

Potential government shutdown could impact vulnerable Americans

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 13:15:22 GMT

WASHINGTON (Nexstar) -- Officials warn that if the government shuts down, the implications will extend far beyond furloughed government employees and could impact some of the most vulnerable Americans.President Joe Biden slammed Republicans for backing out of a previous deal to cut spending and fund the government."We made a deal we shook hands and (said) this is what we're going to do, and now they're reneging on the deal," Biden said.Republican Senator Shelley Moore Capito agrees that House Republicans are to blame if the government shuts down."It's chaos over there quite frankly," she said. "The House just turned down the DOD appropriations bill that was written by Republicans and the Republican conference took it down."A government shutdown means some government employees, like border patrol agents, military members, and other essential employees, would have to work without pay.Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack says a shutdown would impact some of the most vulnerable American...

Girl goes viral after seeing herself in Times Square

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 13:15:22 GMT

MOORE, Okla. (KFOR) - A 1-year-old from Moore, Oklahoma, has gone viral on social media after seeing herself in the bright lights of the Big Apple. Olivia Chandler was featured in a Down Syndrome awareness campaign in New York City last month. “It was just amazing,” said Lori Orr, Chandler's mother. Orr told Nexstar's KFOR she was scrolling through Facebook back in April when she stumbled upon an application for the National Down Syndrome Society’s Times Square Video Presentation and decided to enter Olivia. Orr thought her daughter would be a shoo-in because of her irresistible smile. Test of FEMA emergency alert system planned for early October "Everywhere we go, people say, you know, her smile makes me smile,” said Orr. The annual presentation drew in about 2,400 entries from around the world. Those selected get their picture featured in an hour-long big screen presentation in the Big Apple. "I entered her picture and then, you know, we waited and waited and waited,” said ...

Woe-and-3: The Bears' miserable start to the 2023 season

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 13:15:22 GMT

KANSAS CITY — It's safe to say that the worst-case scenario for the start of the Bears' season has come to pass. There are some fans who might have even expected the team to lose their first three games of the 2023 season, especially Sunday's contest against the reigning Super Bowl champion Chiefs. But to see the team make a number of additions in the offseason and then seem to digress after going 3-14 last year wasn't in the cards. People probably didn't expect a mysterious resignation from their defensive coordinator, either, but that's been part of a miserable first three games of the campaign.Sunday's 41-10 drubbing at the hands of the Chiefs showed the ineptitude of the current Bears' team to a national audience for the second time in three weeks. Outside of stopping the Chiefs on the opening drive, Matt Ebeflus' team was mostly competitive against a Kansas City juggernaut that never let up. The Bears were outgained 456-203, with a few late drives by the visitors making that to...

Police searching for Barton Creek Greenbelt aggravated assault suspect

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 13:15:22 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) -- The Austin Police Department is seeking the public's help to identifying a man accused of firing shots at a person on the Barton Creek Greenbelt over the weekend, APD said on social media.On Saturday, officers responded to Barton Creek Greenbelt trailhead near Spyglass Drive and Barton Skyway, according to police. Officers found a victim and several witnesses when they arrived on the scene, who said a man in the trail area fired shots in the direction of at least one person.Officers searched the area but did not find anyone, according to police. APD said the public using the greenbelts should "exercise situational awareness and caution."On Monday, police had not yet identified a suspect.Detectives are asking anyone with information or video of the incident to utilize the Crime Stoppers tip line at (512) 472-8477 (TIPS), or the Crime Stoppers app. People may remain anonymous. People can also submit tips by downloading APD’s mobile app, Austin PD, free on iPhone and A...

Dane Mizutani: Brian Flores is learning what Ed Donatell lived. This is a flawed defense for the Vikings.

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 13:15:22 GMT

The biggest move of this offseason for the Vikings came in the days leading up to Super Bowl LVII. They weren’t playing in the game and still managed to make new that week by somehow convincing Brian Flores to be their new defensive coordinator.The move was viewed as a coup for the Vikings and brought a lot of optimism to Minnesota in the process. Not only did the presence of Flores seem to outshine the arrival of free agents like cornerback Byron Murphy and pass rusher Marcus Davenport, he also seemed to singlehandedly nullify the departures of fan favorites like cornerback Patrick Peterson and linebacker Eric Kendricks.As long as the Vikings had Flores leading the charge, they were bound to succeed, right? He was going to bring a new scheme fully equipped with exotic blitz packages that would instantly improve a unit that ranked near the bottom of the NFL last season.Not quite. The defense hasn’t shown much improvement so far this season with the Vikings sitting at 0-3...

Bruce Yandle: Are Americans in a funk? It’s time for ‘The Little Engine that Could’

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 13:15:22 GMT

Trust in institutions is declining, expectations for small business outcomes are diminishing and real household incomes are sinking; it is fair to say that Americans seem to be in a funk.The University of Michigan’s September Consumer Sentiment Index is sitting at 71.6 points, which is well above the June 2022 all-time low of 50 but well below the 101 achieved in February 2020. While the index is mired at pandemic levels, the economy has marched ahead. According to a related Economist magazine study, for the first time in more than 40 years, the sentiment index no longer tracks traditional measures of economic activity such as employment, income and GDP growth. Instead, the index seems to be locked in a cellar.The consumer funk is deep and difficult to understand. Could it be worry about inflation? Is it falling personal income? Or lost trust in government and other institutions that help people cope in times of trouble and that are celebrated in better times? Perhaps we need ...

For Twins pitcher Sonny Gray, success this season stems back to work this offseason

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 13:15:22 GMT

As he did one extra rep, one extra sprint in April and May, strength and conditioning coaches Aaron Rhodes and Chuck Bradway had a message for him.“This one is for September. This one is September. Go do one more,’” they told Twins starting pitcher Sonny Gray. “’Do one more for October. Do one more for October.’”Their urging and insistence — as well as the work Gray started last year as soon as the offseason began — paid off: Gray, who went on the injured list three separate times last season, hasn’t missed a start this season, and his performance this year has put him in conversation for the Cy Young Award.The talk in February, when players first report to spring training, is always brimming with optimism. But Gray, 33, who showed up well ahead of schedule after seeing how last year went down, was able to spin that into performance and carry it through the entire season.“Going into the offseason, and toward the end of last season, it was like, ‘You know what? I know how to go out a...