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As desperation in Gaza grows, Israel says it won’t allow aid to flow until Hamas releases hostages

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:10:52 GMT

JERUSALEM (AP) — U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken vowed American support to Israel on Thursday as its military pulverized the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip with airstrikes and prepared for a possible ground invasion. As Palestinians tried to stock up on bread and groceries amid dwindling supplies, Israel said nothing would be allowed into Gaza until Hamas militants freed some 150 hostages taken during their deadly weekend incursion.International aid groups warned of a worsening humanitarian crisis after Israel halted deliveries of food, water, fuel and electricity to Gaza’s 2.3 million people and prevented entry of supplies from Egypt. The war has claimed at least 2,700 lives on both sides.“Not a single electricity switch will be flipped on, not a single faucet will be turned on, and not a single fuel truck will enter until the Israeli hostages are returned home,” Israeli Energy Minister Israel Katz said on social media.Lt. Col. Richard Hecht, an Israeli military spokesman, tol...

Crews work to repair hole after watermain breaks in SW Miami-Dade

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:10:52 GMT

Crews are repairing a road after water woes left a massive hole.It happened along Kendall drive, between Southwest 98th and 99th court, Thursday morning.Water gushed from a broken water main, which led to flooding.7Skyforce flew over the area where crews paved the road after fixing the line.Officials said that if you live in the area, you may see cloudy water but it is safe to drink.

South Florida karate teacher accused of molesting 9-year-old student

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:10:52 GMT

A South Florida karate teacher was arrested after, police said, he molested a nine-year-old student at a karate studio in Southwest Miami-Dade last month.According to the arrest form, Darwin DeJesus Rojas-Frias, 58, was a karate instructor at Showakai Karate Do USA, located at 13716 SW 88th St. in Southwest Miami- Dade, where the incident took place. The victim told her mother, who immediately called police, that on Sept. 29, during a one-on-one karate session, the instructor, Rojas-Frias took her to a small closet in the facility, outside of the view of the girl’s mother, and “grabbed one of her hands, put it inside his pants, and told her to squeeze his penis,” the arrest form states.On Sept. 29, Rojas-Frias was taken into custody and allegedly admitted to taking the victim inside the small closet, which was “away from her mother’s view,” but denied the allegation.On Monday, Oct. 9, the victim was interviewed and provided the same statement she ...

Police seek assault charges against 3 Rhode Island men in death of New England Patriots fan

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:10:52 GMT

BOSTON (AP) — Police in Massachusetts said Thursday that they are pursuing assault and battery and disorderly conduct charges against three Rhode Island men in the recent death of a fan at a New England Patriots game.The Foxborough Police Department said in a statement that it was going to court to seek charges against the men in the Sept. 17 altercation at Gillette Stadium that preceded the death of 53-year-old Dale Mooney, of Newmarket, New Hampshire. Police didn’t name the men or say when a probable cause hearing about the charges might happen.Mooney was punched at least twice in the head during an altercation with several other fans at the game, which ended in a 24-17 win by the visiting Miami Dolphins. The Norfolk County District Attorney’s office found that Mooney did not suffer a “traumatic injury” in the stands, but that he did have a medical issue.Mooney was taken to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead. The district attorney’s office did not provide any details o...

New indictment charges Sen. Menendez with being an unregistered agent of the Egyptian government

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:10:52 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — Federal prosecutors in New York City have rewritten their indictment against U.S. Sen. Bob Menendez of New Jersey and his wife to charge them with conspiring to have him act as an agent of Egypt and Egyptian officials.The superseding indictment was filed in Manhattan federal court on Thursday. It says the conspiracy occurred from January 2018 to June 2022.Messages left with Menendez’s Senate staff and attorney were not immediately answered.The new charge comes just weeks after the Democrat and his wife were accused of accepting bribes of cash, gold bars and a luxury car from three New Jersey businessmen who wanted the senator to help and influence over foreign affairs. The couple have pleaded not guilty.Menendez defiantly pushed back against federal corruption charges last month, saying nearly half a million dollars in cash authorities found in his home was from his personal savings, not from bribes, and was on hand for emergencies.Rejecting rising calls for him to r...

France orders ban on all pro-Palestinian protests 

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:10:52 GMT

French Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin on Thursday announced a systematic ban on pro-Palestinian demonstrations in France, amid the war between Hamas and Israel.Darmanin sent “strict instructions” to ban “pro-Palestinian demonstrations because they are likely to generate public order disturbances,” in a document originally seen by AFP and reported on by other French media.“The organization of these prohibited demonstrations should lead to arrests,” the minister said.Arrests of “organizers and troublemakers” will be made in the future, the ministry told AFP, according to French news. According to Darmanin, more than 100 antisemitic cases have been reported in France since Hamas launched its surprise attack in Israel on Saturday, killing hundreds and triggering Israeli retaliatory strikes and a “complete siege” on more than 2 million people in Gaza.After National Assembly President Yaël Braun-Pivet — who led a minute of sil...

European socialists suspend Robert Fico’s Smer party and its ally Hlas

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:10:52 GMT

The Party of European Socialists on Thursday suspended both Robert Fico’s election-winning Smer (Direction) party and Peter Pellegrini’s Hlas (Voice) party, which on Wednesday announced they’d formed a government in Slovakia.“This step has been taken following the clear divergence from the values of the PES family demonstrated by Smer-SD leader Robert Fico. And additionally, as a result of concerns raised following the announcement of a government coalition between Smer-SD, Hlas-SD and a radical-right party,” said the press release.A meeting of the PES presidency made the announcement a day after the two parties announced an agreement on forming a ruling coalition in Slovakia, along with the right-populist Slovak National Party. The suspension of Hlas — which has an associated rather than full membership in the PES — was not anticipated. Stefan Löfven, the president of PES and former prime minister of Sweden, had threatened to expel Fico in an interview with S...

Olympic chiefs ban Russia — but door still open to Paris 2024 for athletes

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:10:52 GMT

The International Olympic Committee on Thursday banned the Russian Olympic Committee, effective immediately but it has not changed its position on the possibility of Russian athletes taking part in the Paris 2024 Olympics. The IOC said in statement that Russia’s decision to claim regional sports organizations in occupied areas of Donetsk, Kherson, Luhansk and Zaporizhzhia, areas which should be under the authority of Ukraine’s National Olympic Committee, as members was a breach of the Olympic Charter.Because of the breach, the ROC is suspended “with immediate effect until further notice.”As a consequence of the suspension, the Russian committee can’t operate as a National Olympic Committee and will not be able to receive any funding from the Olympic Movement.The statement specifies that the IOC’s position on Russian athletes’ involvement in next year’s Paris 2024 Games remains fully in place. As per the committee’s recommendations from earlier this year, Russian and ...

Tewksbury police investigating after individual places raccoon corpse on resident’s car

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:10:52 GMT

Police in Tewksbury are looking to identify a person who placed a dead raccoon on the windshield of a person’s car overnight on Wednesday.In a statement, the Tewksbury Police Department said it was just after 4 a.m. on Oct. 11, when officers received a call from a woman living on Marshall Street, stating that she had found a dead animal on her car.“Upon arrival, Tewksbury Police spoke with the resident and saw the dead raccoon, which appeared to have been run over by a car, on the windshield of the car,” a news release from Tewksbury PD stated.Reviewing surveillance footage from a Ring Camera, authorities soon found images of a person walking up to the residence around 12:30 a.m. with a black plastic bag.The individual, described as wearing light blue jeans and a black watch cap “with two strings that hang down on the sides,” proceeded to dump the corpse of a racoon onto a vehicle’s windshield before running away.As authorities continue to investi...

A new indictment charges Sen. Menendez with being an unregistered agent of the Egyptian government

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:10:52 GMT

By LARRY NEUMEISTER (Associated Press)NEW YORK (AP) — Federal prosecutors have rewritten their indictment against U.S. Sen. Bob Menendez of New Jersey and his wife to charge them with conspiring to have him act as an agent of Egypt and Egyptian officials.The superseding indictment, filed in Manhattan federal court on Thursday, accuses Menendez of violating the Foreign Agents Registration Act, which requires people to register with the U.S. government if they are acting as “an agent of a foreign principal.” As a member of Congress, Menendez was prohibited from being an agent of a foreign government, even if he did register as one.Messages left with Menendez’s Senate staff and attorney on Thursday were not immediately answered.The indictment says the conspiracy occurred from January 2018 to June 2022. It alleges that in May 2019, Menendez, his wife and a business associate, Wael Hana, met with an Egyptian intelligence official in Menendez’s Senate office in Washington. During the meet...