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A rocket launcher shell accidentally explodes at a home in southern Pakistan and 8 people are dead

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:50:56 GMT

KARACHI, Pakistan (AP) — A shell of a rocket launcher apparently accidentally exploded at a home in a remote village in southern Pakistan on Wednesday, killing at least eight people, including women and children, police said.At least two people were also wounded in the blast in southern Sindh province, said regional police chief Rahil Khoso. Investigators believe that family members took the unexploded shell home after finding it at a nearby open farm field. Such blasts often happen when people try to dismantle unexploded ammunition to sell as scrap metal. The city of Kandhkot, where the explosion took place, is known as a hideout of robbers and criminals who are well armed, including with rockets. Security forces have launched operations against criminals in the area. The Associated Press

In a landmark court case, 6 young climate activists take on 32 European nations

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:50:56 GMT

STRASBOURG, France (AP) — Six young people from Portugal will argue that governments across Europe aren’t doing enough to protect people from the harms of climate change at the European Court of Human Rights on Wednesday, in the latest and largest instance of activists taking governments to court to force climate action.The lawyers representing the young adults and children claim that the 32 European governments they’re suing have failed to adequately address global warming and therefore violated some of their fundamental rights.“We’ve put forward evidence to show that it’s within the power of states to do vastly more to adjust their emissions, and they are choosing not do it,” lawyer Gerry Liston told The Associated Press at the start of the day-long hearing.Although there have been successful climate cases at national and regional levels — young environmentalists recently won a similar case in Montana — the activists’ legal team said that because national jurisdictions...

Abduction and terrorism trial after boy found dead at New Mexico compound opens with mom’s testimony

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:50:56 GMT

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — Federal prosecutors presented tearful testimony Tuesday from the mother of a sickly toddler who was whisked away from his Georgia home by relatives without her permission to a remote desert encampment in northern New Mexico where he died. Four family members, including the boy’s aunts, are facing kidnapping or terrorism charges, or both, that stem from an August 2018 raid in search of the 3-year-old boy at a squalid encampment near the Colorado line. Authorities said they found the suspects living with 11 hungry children without running water at the encampment encircled by berms of tires with an adjacent shooting range where guns and ammunition were seized.The badly decomposed body of Abdul-Ghani Wahhaj was eventually found in an underground tunnel at the compound. Abdul-Ghani’s mother, Hakima Ramzi, recounted her love and devotion to a cheerful son who lived with severe developmental disabilities and frequent seizures — and her shock when husband, Sir...

UN must focus on choices that will define our century, not just the short-term

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:50:56 GMT

Getty ImagesSince the establishment of the United Nations 78 years ago, the General Assembly has brought the world’s most influential leaders together under one roof to solve the world’s most pressing issues. Every year, this summit serves as a reminder of just how much responsibility is borne by so few — whose decisions, even those seemingly unimportant, can change the fates of billions, writes Kassym-Jomart Tokayev.This year, that responsibility weighs even heavier than usual. Not only is our international order more polarized than it has been in decades, but it is fragmented at a time when we cannot afford division, given the reality that these are decisive years in our planet’s history.Whether on climate change, on artificial intelligence,or in countless other areas, the decisions taken by global leaders over the next few months and years will resonate for decades, if not centuries. As such, every moment of international dialogue takes on a new dimension of importance.My message...

Celebrating the 74th Anniversary of the Founding of the People’s Republic of China: A Night to Remember in Brussels

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:50:56 GMT

On the evening of Monday, 25th September 2023, the Tangla Hotel Brussels located at Avenue Emmanuel Mounier 5, Woluwe-Saint-Lambert, was ablaze with the colours of China as dignitaries, diplomats, and guests gathered to celebrate the 74th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China.The event, hosted by H.E. Mr. Fu Cong, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary, Head of Mission of the People’s Republic of China to the European Union, and H.E. Mr. Cao Zhongming, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the People’s Republic of China to the Kingdom of Belgium, was a spectacular showcase of Chinese culture, history, and diplomacy.As the sun dipped below the Brussels skyline, the Tangla Hotel's grand ballroom was transformed into a mesmerizing tapestry of Chinese aesthetics. Traditional lanterns and elegant Chinese calligraphy adorned the room, setting the stage for an evening that would transport guests to the heart of China.The event was not only a celebrat...

Single family residence in Dublin sells for $1.6 million

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:50:56 GMT

7296 Hansen Drive – Google Street ViewA 2,220-square-foot house built in 1964 has changed hands. The spacious property located in the 7200 block of Hansen Drive in Dublin was sold on July 31, 2023, for $1,580,000, or $712 per square foot. This two-story house provides a generous living space with its five bedrooms and three bathrooms. In addition, the home features a garage.Additional houses that have recently been sold close by include:A 2,220-square-foot home on the 11600 block of Manzanita Lane in Dublin sold in July 2023, for $1,485,000, a price per square foot of $669. The home has 5 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms.On Manzanita Lane, Dublin, in August 2022, a 2,220-square-foot home was sold for $1,575,000, a price per square foot of $709. The home has 5 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms.In January 2023, a 2,583-square-foot home on Silvergate Drive in Dublin sold for $1,458,000, a price per square foot of $564. The home has 3 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms. 

Iran says it has successfully launched an imaging satellite into orbit amid tensions with the West

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:50:56 GMT

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Iran claimed on Wednesday that it successfully launched an imaging satellite into space, a move that could further ratchet up tensions with Western nations that fear its space technology could be used to develop nuclear weapons.Iran’s Communication Minister Isa Zarepour said the Noor-3 satellite had been put in an orbit 450 kilometers (280 miles) above the Earth’s surface, the state-run IRNA news agency reported. It was not clear when exactly the launch took place.There was no immediate acknowledgment from Western officials of the launch or of the satellite being put into orbit. The U.S. military did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Iran has had a series of failed launches in recent years.Zarepour said the aerospace arm of Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard, which has had success in launching satellites in the past, had carried out the most recent launch. Authorities did not immediately release images of the ...

Stock market today: World shares mixed after Wall Street retreat deepens

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:50:56 GMT

TOKYO (AP) — World shares were mixed on Wednesday after a sharp decline on Wall Street that took benchmarks back to where they were in June.Oil prices rose and U.S. futures also were higher. Germany’s DAX edged 0.1% lower to 15,241.78 and the CAC 40 in Paris was up 0.1% at 7,082.75. In London, the FTSE 100 shed 0.1% to 7,621.77. The future for the S&P 500 was up 0.4%, while that for the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.3%.On Tuesday, the S&P 500 tumbled 1.5% and the Dow industrials fell 1.1% . The Nasdaq composite lost 1.6%. September is on track to be the worst month of the year for stocks as investors become convinced the Federal Reserve will keep interest rates high for a longer time than they had earlier hoped. In Asian trading, Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 recovered from earlier losses, gaining 0.3% to 32,371.90. In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng advanced 0.7% to 17,592.54. The Shanghai Composite index added 0.2% to 3,107.32. In China, concerns have continued over heav...

Leader of Spain’s conservatives expected to lose on his first chance to become prime minister

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:50:56 GMT

BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — Barring a last-minute surprise, the leader of Spain’s conservatives will miss on his first shot to become the country’s next prime minister when the parliament votes Wednesday on his petition to form a government.Popular Party leader Alberto Núñez Feijóo appears set to come up four votes short of the necessary absolute majority of 176 votes in favor. If he loses the vote as expected, Feijóo will have a second opportunity on Friday when the bar is lowered and he would need more “yes” than “no” votes.The Popular Party holds 137 seats in the Madrid-based Congress of the Deputies, the most of any party. But even with backing from the far-right Vox’s 33 lawmakers and two from small conservative parties representing Navarra and the Canary Islands, Feijóo will only reach 172 votes in his favor.Spain’s July 23 national election left the parliament highly fragmented with its 350 legislators spread between 11 different parties, setting the stage for a difficult path to...

A fire at a wedding hall in northern Iraq has killed around 100 people and injured 150

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:50:56 GMT

MOSUL, Iraq (AP) — A raging fire seemingly caused by fireworks set off to celebrate a Christian wedding consumed a hall packed with guests in northern Iraq, killing around 100 people and injuring 150 others as authorities warned Wednesday the death toll could still rise.Authorities said that flammable building materials also contributed to the latest disaster to hit Iraq’s dwindling Christian minority. In the fire’s chaotic aftermath, officials offered conflicting death tolls and security officials said they detained staff at the wedding hall as part of their investigation.The fire happened in the Hamdaniya area of Iraq’s Nineveh province, authorities said. That’s a predominantly Christian area just outside of the city of Mosul, some 335 kilometers (205 miles) northwest of Baghdad. There was no official word on the cause of the blaze, but the Kurdish television news channel Rudaw aired footage showing pyrotechnics shooting flames up from the floor of the event and settin...