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Russia-led alliance holds military drills in Belarus

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:53:12 GMT

TALLINN, Estonia (AP) — More than 2,000 troops from a Russia-led security alliance opened military exercises Friday in parts of Belarus near the borders of NATO countries.The exercises of the Collective Security Treaty Organization include troops from Russia, Belarus, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan and Tajikistan. Armenia is also a member of the CSTO but did not send any of its forces; in January, Armenia said it would not host CSTO drills this year amid tense relations with Russia.Belarus’ defense ministry said the exercises, which are to last through Wednesday, are to prepare for joint operations, including responses to a nuclear accident. The exercises are taking place in three western Belarus regions that border NATO members Poland and Lithuania. Polish Foreign Minister Zbigniew Rau said the purpose of the military exercises was to destabilize the region.Belarus late Friday claimed that a Polish military helicopter flew at low altitude about 1200 meters (0.75 miles) into Belarusia...

She said she killed her lover in self-defense. Court says jury properly saw her as the aggressor

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:53:12 GMT

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — The North Carolina Supreme Court upheld the murder conviction of a woman who fatally shot her lover in her bedroom, ruling Friday that the trial judge gave appropriate instructions to the jury about the legal limits for deadly force inside a home.Five of the seven justices agreed to overturn a unanimous appellate decision that had ordered a new trial for Wendy Dawn Lamb Hicks, who was convicted in the death of Caleb Adams. Evidence shows he was shot twice in the back in her bedroom doorway.The majority’s primary opinion said it was proper, based on evidence, for the jury to be instructed that Hicks could not cite self-defense and the protection of one’s home to justify deadly force if the jury could infer that she was acting as the aggressor, even if she did not instigate the confrontation.Adams was married to someone else and began a relationship with Hicks after they met at work in 2015.The relationship was tumultuous and strained, marked by the us...

Quebec school districts are improperly handling teacher misconduct cases: report

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:53:12 GMT

Quebec’s education minister says it’s absurd that a teacher can commit sexual misconduct and then be transferred without consequences to another school district.Bernard Drainville made his comments Friday in reaction to a report that identified numerous shortcomings in how sexual or violentmisconduct cases against teachers and other employees are treated within the school network.“It makes no sense that a teacher, and more broadly, a service centre employee, can commit acts of a sexual nature or violent gestures and move from one service centre to another without consequence,” Drainville told reporters in Quebec City.Drainville requested the report earlier this year after several allegations of sexual misconduct in schools came to light. It was completed earlier this summer and published Friday, looking at 18 cases at different school centres and boards around the province.The report raises several problems with the way personnel files are handled, including a lack...

UN chief is globetrotting to four major meetings before the gathering of world leaders in September

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:53:12 GMT

UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The United Nations chief is going globetrotting to four major meetings before the biggest meeting of all – the annual gathering of world leaders at the U.N. General Assembly starting Sept. 18.Secretary-General António Guterres heads first to Nairobi on Saturday for the Africa Climate Summit on Sept. 4-5, then to Jakarta for a U.N. summit with the 10-nation Association of Southeast Asian Nations known as ASEAN on Sept. 6-7.From there, he flies to New Delhi for the G20 summit of the world’s 20 major economies on Sept. 8-10 and then briefly returns to New York before heading to Havana for the summit of the G77 — a coalition of some 134 developing countries and China — on Sept. 14-15.He will arrive back in New York just before the General Assembly’s high-level week begins, where the war in Ukraine is expected to dominate the annual meeting for a second year.Albania’s U.N. Ambassador Ferit Hoxha, this month’s president of the U.N. Security Council, told reporters Fr...

NC State safety Ashford headed back to Raleigh a day after frightening injury

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:53:12 GMT

HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) — North Carolina State safety Rakeim Ashford was cleared to return to Raleigh on Friday, a day after being taken off the field on a stretcher during the Wolfpack’s season-opening win over UConn.Medical tests on Ashford came back “normal” on Friday and the 6-foot-1 grad student was being released from a Hartford hospital, team spokeswoman Annabelle Myers said in an email.Ashford, a transfer from Jones College in Mississippi, was hit late by a UConn player at the end of a kickoff return with 1:54 left in the third quarter. He went down and lay motionless for about 10 minutes as both teams knelt and watched emergency crews work on him.A cart was brought onto the field, but not used. Ashford was eventually strapped to a stretcher and wheeled off the field.UConn’s Isiah Davis was called for unnecessary roughness for the blindside hit on the play.The Wolfpack went on to score a touchdown on the ensuing drive to take a 24-14 lead and won by that score.___AP colle...

Metrolinx removing plastic COVID barriers on GO, UP Express trains

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:53:12 GMT

Metrolinx says it is removing the plexiglass COVID dividers that went up on GO and UP Express trains at the start of the pandemic.“During the pandemic, Metrolinx followed the guidance of public health officials and implemented measures to keep customers and employees safe,” Metrolink said in a statement to CityNews.“In consultation with Metrolinx’s health and safety team and in line with public health guidance, the decision has been made to now remove these measures from GO and UP Express trains.”Along with the dividers, decals and hand sanitizer dispensers will also be phased out.“Customers may notice a mixture of GO trains with and without dividers, decals, and hand sanitizer dispensers, while work is underway to remove them,” Metrolinx added.The provincial transit agency first installed the plexiglass barriers between seats in June 2020 as part of a suite of COVID safety measures.The province lifted its mask mandate for public transit in June 2...

Search underway for man missing since November

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:53:12 GMT

CHICAGO — A search is underway for a missing man who was last contacted in November of 2022, according to Chicago police. Officers say they are searching for Michal Serafin, a 37-year-old man who police say has connections to the North Side of Chicago and in Evanston. According to police, Serafin, who has brown hair and brown eyes, stands 5'8" and weighs around 2502 Lbs. Police have not provided details on what may have led to Serafin's disappearance.Anyone with information on the whereabouts of 37-year-old Michal Serafin is asked to call Area Three detectives at (312)744-8266.Tips for police can also filed at CPDtip.com. Tips can be left anonymously.

USPS payroll error impacts 45K rural postal workers

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:53:12 GMT

(WHNT) - An "egregious payroll error" reportedly kept over 45,000 rural United States Postal Service (USPS) workers from getting their recent paychecks. In a letter on its website, the National Rural Letter Carriers' Association (NRLCA) confirmed they have been in talks with the USPS about the issue. Walmart, Sam’s Club customers across Alabama mischarged after grocery tax change The union said that all of the affected carriers are entitled to a salary advance starting Friday, Sept. 1. NRLCA stated those advances would be sent to local offices to be processed into a money order.Impacted carriers will get a 65% advance of their gross pay. That number will be calculated to be close to the average net take-home pay.Those carriers will be required to pay the advance back when the U.S. Postal Service has repaid them the correct amount. USPS officials told the union that the issue that caused the problem has been found and is being fixed, so this should not happen again.

Ohio dog found 10 years after going missing

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:53:12 GMT

DAYTON, Ohio (WDTN) — A family was reunited with their furry friend after she went missing 10 years ago.A dog named Abby was recently found in really heartbreaking conditions. According to the Montgomery County Animal Resource Center (ARC), she could barely stand or walk. Rabid bats being found inside Ohio homes The shelter discovered Abby had a microchip, scanned it and contacted the family, which had not seen the dog in 10 years. When the family came to pick Abby up, she became exuberant.Since Abby returned to her owners, it is reported that she is doing very well and is happy. Where’s my Facebook settlement check? Why payments haven’t arrived – and when they might Abby's mama reports she's gained a whopping 16 pounds since coming home and loves playing with her family and going on walks, despite everything she's been through, said the ARC.If you have a pet, you are encouraged to get your pet microchipped. Microchipping your pet takes only a few minutes to complete. For inform...

Canyon Lake drops to lowest level on record as drought persists

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:53:12 GMT

SAN MARCOS, Texas (KXAN) — Canyon Lake has dropped to its lowest lake pool elevation ever recorded, according to data from the Texas Water Development Board.As of Sept. 1, the water level is at 892.38' above mean sea level. The previous record low was 892.70' on Sept. 8, 2009.The lake is west of San Marcos and is the main water source for the city, along with the Edwards Aquifer and the San Marcos River, both of which are also seeing low levels."With all our water sources experiencing low levels, SMTX Utilities is taking extra steps to encourage water conservation in our community," Tyler Hjorth, the city's director of utilities, said. "Water conservation is a community effort, and we want everyone to get involved as extreme heat and drought conditions continue in our region."San Marcos is currently in Stage 4 water restrictions, meaning customers can only use automatic irrigation once every other week. LIST: What are the current water restrictions in your city? In an effort to ra...