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Suspected Russian diplomat is occupying the nation’s vetoed embassy site in Australia’s capital

Published Tue, 18 Feb 2025 23:43:44 GMT

CANBERRA, Australia (AP) — A suspected lone Russian diplomat is apparently squatting on the site of Moscow’s proposed embassy after the Australian government vetoed the plan on security grounds. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese dismissed the Russian act of defiance, saying a “bloke standing in the cold on a bit of grass in Canberra is not a threat to our national security.”Parliament passed emergency legislation last week blocking on security grounds Russia’s lease on the largely empty block because the new embassy would have been too close to Parliament House.A man has been living on the site in a portable building since Sunday when passersby first saw Australian Federal Police outside the fenced block in Canberra’s Yarralumla diplomatic precinct.The Russian Embassy refused to comment on a report in The Australian newspaper that the man seen smoking cigarettes outside his accommodation was a Russian diplomat.The embassy also declined to explain why the man was on the sit...

Nearly 1.5 million foreign pilgrims have arrived in Saudi Arabia so far for annual Hajj pilgrimage

Published Tue, 18 Feb 2025 23:43:44 GMT

MECCA, Saudi Arabia (AP) — Saudi officials say close to 1.5 million foreign pilgrims have arrived in the country so far for the annual Hajj pilgrimage, the vast majority by air.This year’s pilgrimage will be the first without the restrictions imposed during the coronavirus pandemic, starting in 2020. More pilgrims are expected to arrive before the start of the Hajj on Monday.The Hajj is one of the five pillars of Islam, and all Muslims are required to undertake it at least once in their lives if they are physically and financially able. It is one of the world’s largest religious gatherings.The Saudi media ministry Thursday that more than 1.49 million foreign pilgrims had arrived through its international ports up to Wednesday, with 1.43 million travelling by air. Saudi officials have said they expect the number of pilgrims in 2023 to reach pre-pandemic levels. In 2019, more than 2.4 million Muslims made the pilgrimage.The Associated Press

Tropical Storm Bret swirls near St. Vincent as it enters eastern Caribbean

Published Tue, 18 Feb 2025 23:43:44 GMT

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — Tropical Storm Bret swirled close to St. Vincent late Thursday as it began pushing into the eastern Caribbean, where islands were shut down to brace for torrential downpours, landslides and flooding.The storm’s center was about 5 miles (10 kilometers) east of St. Vincent just before midnight and moving westward at 18 mph (30 kph). Its maximum sustained winds had weakened a bit to 60 mph (95 kph).Airports, businesses, schools and offices closed on St. Vincent, St. Lucia, Dominica, Martinique and other islands by midday.Ralph Gonsalves, prime minister for St. Vincent and the Grenadines, had urged people to go to a government shelter if they believed their home might not withstand the strong winds and heavy rains.“These storms can turn around fairly quickly,” he warned.Earlier in the day, forecasters had warned that the storm might pass directly over St. Lucia, an island north of St. Vincent, but its path shifted to the south during the night.“Protect...

AI pioneer Yoshua Bengio to focus on safer uses of AI, argues regulation necessary

Published Tue, 18 Feb 2025 23:43:44 GMT

TORONTO — Artificial intelligence pioneer Yoshua Bengio says he will be redirecting his research to ensure he is working on applications of the technology that are safe for society.“I have been thinking a lot about this and I am going to do what I think is best to go in the right direction,” the 2018 winner of the A.M. Turing Award and director of the Mila AI institute in Quebec said Thursday evening.“I think I am going to reorient my research so that either I am working on applications that are not dangerous or very safe like…healthcare or the environment or working on safety, to prepare and prevent what could happen.”Bengio’s remarks came at the conclusion of a Munk debate hosted at Roy Thomson Hall in Toronto, where he and Massachusetts Institute of Technology physics professor Max Tegmark sparred with other technology experts about whether AI poses an existential threat.The pair argued that AI is on a trajectory to become even more powerful and coul...

India’s Modi brings comedy game to big White House dinner in his honor

Published Tue, 18 Feb 2025 23:43:44 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi brought his comedy game to Thursday’s big White House dinner in his honor, cracking jokes about his lack of singing chops, the time President Joe Biden wanted him to eat even though he was fasting and how well Indians and Americans are getting along. Not really known for having a sense of humor, the prime minister kept the nearly 400 guests in stitches as he toasted Biden and first lady Jill Biden before dinner was served. “I know your hospitality has moved your guests to sing. I wish, I too, had the singing talent,” Modi joked. “I could have also sang before you all.”He was referring to South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol, who surprised guests when he got up onstage during a White House state dinner honoring him in April and belted out a rendition of “American Pie,” one of his favorite songs, to raucous applause. Modi is on a state visit designed to highlight and foster deeper ties between India and the U.S. He said that ...

Former New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern is writing a book on leadership

Published Tue, 18 Feb 2025 23:43:44 GMT

WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — Former New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern announced Friday she is writing a book, with the focus more on leadership than on politics.In an Instagram post, Ardern said she is often asked whether she will write about her five years as New Zealand’s leader.“At first, my answer was no. I didn’t want to write a book that hauled over the internal politics of the last five years, and then someone convinced me that I didn’t have to,” Ardern wrote.“That maybe it might be worth expanding on some of things I talked about in my valedictory instead — like the idea you can be your own kind of leader and still make a difference. And so that’s what I’m planning to do.”Ardern said she had no date for when the book will be published.“But I hope when it’s done, it’s the kind of book that would have made a difference to my 14-year-old self,” Ardern wrote. Just 37 when she became prime minister in 2017, Ardern was seen as a global icon of the left....

Residents, leaders call for end of violence in West Pullman

Published Tue, 18 Feb 2025 23:43:44 GMT

CHICAGO — Residents, officials and community leaders gathered Thursday evening in West Pullman calling for an end to the violence.Since May 23, the group said there have been at least nine shootings and five homicides in the area they are concerned about.The latest shooting, less than two hours before the press conference, wounded a 14-year-old girl. 14-year-old girl shot while outside in West Pullman The group said over the past couple of days, two shootings within two blocks stem from what they believe is an ongoing "turf war" between two groups. Those shootings happened on 128th Street between Parnell and Normal.Bob Jackson, the CEO of Roseland Ceasefire, was contacted by residents to help engage with them and help stop the violence.“Over the weekend there were a few people that were shot, and they’re tired of it," Jackson said.On Wednesday, police arrested a mother and her 14-year-old son in connection with a homicide on Sunday at a hot dog stand. Mother instructed 14-year-o...

1 dead after being struck by motorboat in Otter Tail County lake

Published Tue, 18 Feb 2025 23:43:44 GMT

One person was accidentally struck and killed by a boat on a northwestern Minnesota lake on Thursday afternoon.The Otter Tail County Sheriff’s Office said it received a 911 call around 4:15 p.m. Thursday regarding a report of an individual struck by a boat on Six Lake, just southwest of Frazee.The victim was pronounced dead at the scene despite lifesaving efforts.Authorities were not releasing information about the victim and boat operator or any details about the circumstances of the incident.However, no foul play or alcohol use is suspected, the sheriff’s office. No charges are anticipated in what it characterized as a tragic accident.Related ArticlesLocal News | Man charged with second-degree murder in fatal June 9 shooting in Itasca County Local News | St. Paul fire captain remembered at funeral as leaving MN ‘a better place than he found it’ Local News | Authorities ID 26-year-old man killed in grain bin accident in western...

Man missing, presumed drowned after canoe capsizes in Boundary Waters

Published Tue, 18 Feb 2025 23:43:44 GMT

Authorities continue to search for an 18-year-old man who has not been seen since his canoe capsized in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness on Wednesday evening.The Cook County Sheriff’s Office dispatch received word of the missing canoeist at 6:44 p.m. He was fishing on Gillis Lake and was not wearing a personal flotation device when his canoe overturned. Another occupant of the canoe was able to swim to shore, but did not see their companion resurface.At the time of the incident, winds out of the south-southwest were reported at about 6 mph, gusting to as high as 13 mph.Sheriff’s deputies, Cook County Search and Rescue, Gunflint Fire Department and U.S. Forest Service staff responded, staging their recovery efforts from the Tuscarora Lodge, about 4 miles to the east of Gillis Lake on Round Lake. A Forest Service Beaver floatplane assisted in the search for the missing canoeist, who was not yet publicly identified as of 2:30 p.m. Thursday.In a statement, Cook County Sheriff P...

Timberwolves trade into start of second round to select G-League Ignite forward Leonard Miller

Published Tue, 18 Feb 2025 23:43:44 GMT

The Timberwolves made a move to shoot up the board Thursday, dealing a pair of future second-round picks to nab the No. 33 selection — the third pick of the second round — to select G-League Ignite forward Leonard Miller.Miller is a 19-year-old, 6-foot-10 forward who averaged 18 points and 11 rebounds in the G-League this past season. Miller pulled out of the draft a year ago and decided to play against pro competition that helped him develop and mature as a prospect.Minnesota entered the evening with only the No. 53 overall selection, but basketball boss Tim Connelly noted Wednesday it’s easier to move into the top of the second round versus the first should a prospect pique your interest.“I think the early second there is a lot of picks in play. It’s just what’s the price?” Connelly said. “Certainly we have a board and if we think a guy has dropped to an area we can move up to get him, we think he’s undervalued, we’d be pretty aggressive.”...