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Massachusetts shelters will be full by end of the month, Governor says

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:55:32 GMT

The burgeoning flow of migrants into Massachusetts has strained the state’s shelter system, which is now forecast to hit the breaking point by the end of the month, according to the governor.On Monday, Gov. Maura Healey  announced that the tens of thousands currently living in state-provided housing may be among the last the state can afford to shelter. Without intervention by the Biden Administration, Healey said, the system will not be able to help any further.“For months now, we have been expanding shelter capacity at an unsustainable rate to meet rising demand. Despite the heroic work of public officials, shelter providers and the National Guard, we have reached a point where we can no longer safely or responsibly expand,” Healey said.According to the governor, as of October 16 there are 7,000 families — 23,000 individuals, she said, half of whom are children — using the state shelter system. Massachusetts is alone among the 50 states in guaranteeing women with children and fami...

Semitruck driver killed when Colorado train derails, spilling coal cars and closing major highway

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:55:32 GMT

By JESSE BEDAYN and COLLEEN SLEVIN (Associated Press)DENVER (AP) — A semi-trailer truck driver was killed when a train derailed and a bridge collapsed, spewing coal and mangled train cars across a major highway near Pueblo, Colorado that was closed indefinitely, authorities said Monday. The 60-year-old driver was initially said to be trapped in Sunday’s accident along Interstate 25, but authorities said Monday that he had died. No other vehicles were involved, Pueblo County Sheriff’s Office spokesperson Gayle Perez said.The Colorado State Patrol and the sheriff’s office posted photos and videos showing a partially collapsed bridge over the interstate with the semi-truck caught beneath. The images also show a pileup of train cars, train wheels scattered across the scene and loads of coal covering a portion of the highway.The highway — the main north-south highway in Colorado — remained closed Monday morning. The Colorado Department of Transpor...

Nearly a thousand people rally in downtown to show support for Palestinians

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:55:32 GMT

SAN DIEGO -- As the ongoing war rages in Israel, nearly a thousand people gathered in downtown San Diego on Sunday to show their support for the Palestinian people.Young children with the Palestinian Youth Movement chanted "free Palestine" on the steps of the San Diego County Administration Building throughout the afternoon. They were joined by hundreds of demonstrators waving flags and holding up signs to show solidarity with the Palestinians impacted by the conflict.The protest echoes other demonstrations in cities across the globe that have drawn out thousands to call for the end of "Israeli occupation" since last Saturday, when Hamas launched a surprise attack that killed more than 1,300 Israeli citizens. Police investigate ‘hate incident’ at Islamic Center of San Diego over flyers Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared that the country was at war with the militants, prompting thousands of retaliatory air strikes and a "complete siege" of Gaza.As of 9 p.m. Sunday, ...

6-year-old boy is buried, mother treated after attack that police call an anti-Muslim hate crime

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:55:32 GMT

CHICAGO (AP) — A 6-year-old boy was being buried Monday and his mother was hospitalized with stab wounds after their 71-year-old landlord attacked them because of their Muslim faith and high emotions over the Israel-Hamas war globally and nationwide, police said.Jewish and Muslim groups have reported an increase of hateful rhetoric in the wake of the war, and Chicago-area landlord Joseph Czuba had made disparaging remarks about Muslims to the Palestinian American family, according to the local Council on American-Islamic Relations.On Saturday, the 32-year-old mother called 911 to report that her landlord had attacked her with a knife. She ran into a bathroom and kept fighting him off, the Will County Sheriff’s Office said.“Detectives were able to determine that both victims in this brutal attack were targeted by the suspect due to them being Muslim and the ongoing Middle Eastern conflict involving Hamas and the Israelis,” the sheriff’s statement said. The man suspected in the ...

Venezuela and opposition to resume talks in Barbados, mediator Norway says

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:55:32 GMT

MEXICO CITY (AP) — Venezuela’s government and opposition will resume their dialogue, mediated by Norway, with talks scheduled for Tuesday in Barbados, Norway’s embassy in Mexico said Monday in a brief statement posted to the platform X.Mexico hosted multiple rounds of talks in 2021 and 2022. When they last met in November 2022, the sides agreed to create a U.N.-managed fund to finance health, food and education programs for the poor.The U.S. government, in response, agreed to allow oil giant Chevron to pump Venezuelan oil.Colombia and other countries have tried in recent months to restart negotiations, but the government of President Nicolás Maduro has demanded that the U.S. drop economic sanctions and unfreeze Venezuelan funds held overseas as a condition of resuming talks. Norway’s statement Monday said that the two sides had decided to resume the dialogue “with the objective of reaching a political agreement.” Venezuela’s government did not immediately comment.The dialogue ...

LinkedIn cuts more than 600 workers, about 3% of workforce

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:55:32 GMT

SUNNYVALE, Calif. (AP) — LinkedIn said Monday it is laying off hundreds of employees amounting to about 3% of the social media company’s workforce.The Microsoft-owned career network is cutting about 668 roles across its engineering, product, talent and finance teams. “Talent changes are a difficult, but necessary and regular part of managing our business,” the company said in a statement. The job cuts follow another more than 700 layoffs LinkedIn announced in May, as well as thousands more this year from parent company Microsoft, which has owned the professional-networking service since buying it for $26 billion in 2016.LinkedIn keeps growing and said its annual revenue surpassed $15 billion for the first time in the fiscal year that ended in June. The service, headquartered in Sunnyvale, California, makes money from advertisements on the platform as well as from users who pay to subscribe for premium features.LinkedIn reports having about 19,500 employees.Redmond, Washington-...

Nice player Atal investigated for ‘defending terrorism’ after reposting antisemitic message

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:55:32 GMT

NICE, France (AP) — The Nice public prosecutor’s office opened a preliminary investigation Monday targeting soccer player Youcef Atal on charges “of defending terrorism” after he shared an antisemitic message on social media. The prosecutor’s office said Atal is also being investigated for “public incitement to hatred or violence because of a particular religion.”Atal, who plays for French league club Nice and the Algeria national team, apologized after reportedly reposting and then deleting a video in which a Palestinian preacher made an antisemitic statement.French Football Federation President Philippe Diallo said Atal had relayed “appeals for violence.” Diallo said in a statement that he “condemns them with the greatest severity” and that the case will be handled by the federation’s ethics committee.Writing on Instagram, the defender said he understood that his post “shocked several people, which was not my intention.”Atal also said he condemns all forms of vio...

First group of Canadians leave West Bank for Jordan as those in Gaza brace for worst

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:55:32 GMT

OTTAWA — Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly says a group of Canadians has crossed safely from the West Bank into neighbouring Jordan as violence continues in Israel’s escalating war against Hamas. Joly made the announcement this morning on X, the platform previously known as Twitter, thanking the Global Affairs staff who she says worked around the clock to make it happen.The federal government says 21 Canadians and foreign nationals took a bus out of the West Bank, a Palestinian territory that Israel has occupied since 1967, and where it has established settlements.Long-simmering tensions in the region exploded on Oct. 7 when Hamas fighters stormed into Israel from the Gaza Strip, killing hundreds of civilians and taking more than 150 people hostage.Israel responded by bombarding Hamas-controlled Gaza and cutting off food, water and electricity to 2.3 million Palestinians, and more than 4,000 people have been killed on both sides in the last 10 days.With Israel planning a m...

He’s a survivor: A mother fights for son kidnapped by Hamas militants

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:55:32 GMT

LONDON (AP) — Hersh Goldberg-Polin is like a lot of other young people.The 23-year-old from Jerusalem loves music, wants to see the world and, now that he’s finished his military service, plans to go to university. But first he has to come home.Goldberg-Polin was last seen on Oct. 7, when Hamas militants loaded him into the back of a pickup with other hostages abducted from a music festival where at least 260 people were killed.His mother, Rachel Goldberg, still expects to see him again.“He’s a survivor,” Goldberg said of her son, whose grin beams out from behind a sparse, youthful beard in family photos. “He’s not like this big, bulky guy. But I think that survival has a lot to do with where you are mentally,” she added.Born in Berkeley, California, Goldberg-Polin moved to Israel with his family when he was 7 years old.As a child, he wanted to learn about the world, pouring over maps and atlases to learn the names of capital cities and mountains. Later he became a fan of psychedeli...

City establishes 15 food scrap drop-off sites for new composting program

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:55:32 GMT

CHICAGO — Chicago's first-ever citywide composting initiative was announced on Monday with 15 food scrap drop-off sites.To participate, residents must sign up for a nearby drop-off location, collect in sealed containers and bring the collected materials to the green carts at the sites.The 15 food scrap drop-off sites are:  Morgan Park – 11059 S. Homewood Ave. Englewood – 611 W. 69th St. West Englewood – 1756 W. 74th St. West Edelson – 3720 W. 55th St. Grand Boulevard – 4352 S. Cottage Grove Ave. Brighton Park – 3359 S. Maplewood Ave. Near South Side – 1758 S. Clark St. Lower West Side – 1944 W. Cullerton St. West Town – 2505 W. Grand Ave. Logan Square –2460 W Cortland.  Belmont Cragin – 5605 W. Grand Ave. Avondale – 3143 N. Rockwell St.  Bowmanville – 5333 N. Western Ave. Irving Park – 4605 W. Lawrence Ave. Norwood Park – 6453 W. Higgins Ave."Diverting food scraps for composting ...