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‘No good options’: Sudan’s warring sides have committed ‘extensive war crimes,’ Amnesty says

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:24:53 GMT

CAIRO (AP) — A leading human rights group said on Thursday Sudan’s warring parties have committed “extensive war crimes” including mass killings of civilians, rape and sexual slavery of women in the ongoing conflict.The east African country plunged into chaos in mid-April when monthslong tensions between the military and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces exploded into open fighting in the capital of Khartoum, and elsewhere across the country.Amnesty International’s 56-page report said civilians were deliberately targeted and killed and wounded. Women were raped, with some of them held in conditions “amounting to sexual slavery” mostly in the capital, Khartoum, and the western region of Darfur.“Sexual violence has been a defining element of this conflict since the beginning,” Donatella Rovera, co-author of the report, told The Associated Press. “Civilians really have no good options. It’s difficult for them to leave. It’s incredibly dangerous for them to stay.”Almost ...

Dead fish carpet beaches at Pacific coast town in north Mexico as experts blame toxic algae bloom

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:24:53 GMT

MEXICO CITY (AP) — A town on northern Mexico’s Pacific coast saw its beaches carpeted with dead fish after what experts describe as a toxic algae bloom. Officials in the northern state of Sinaloa said this week that dead fish started washing up on beaches around the hamlet of El Maviri around July 25.. About a ton of fish carcasses was trucked away, and some were kept for testing. Randy Ross, an inspector with Mexico’s health standards agency, said a cyanobacteria was found in the fish.But researchers said they are also looking at the possibility that high water temperatures — which spiked to as much as 95 degrees (35 Celsius) in recent weeks — might have contributed to the die-off.Biologist Rosalba Alonso Rodríguez of Mexico’s National Autonomous University said it would be the first time that this particular species of toxic algae was found in that area. She said high water temperatures can reduce the amount of oxygen in the water, potentially harming fish.The Associated Press

30 dead dogs found in freezer at 'horrible' Ohio animal rescue, owner arrested

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:24:53 GMT

MIDDLETOWN, Ohio (WCMH) — Deputies have arrested an Ohio woman after finding animals at her dog rescue in "the most horrible conditions ever seen,” according to the Butler County Sheriff's Office.On Wednesday, 60-year-old Ronda Murphy was arrested on three charges, including two misdemeanor counts and one felony count of cruelty to a companion animal. The sheriff's office said as the investigation continues, more charges could be filed. Ronda Murphy. (Courtesy Photo/Butler County Sherriff's Office)Deputy dog wardens seized 90 living dogs and at least 30 dead dogs found on two properties owned by Murphy. The sheriff's office said she had operated an animal rescue branded as Helping Hands for Furry Paws. FBI finds 200 sex trafficking victims, including 59 missing kids On Murphy's properties, investigators found remains of dead adult dogs and puppies inside refrigerators, freezers, and other locations in varying states of decomposition. One of the garages housed over 25 dogs in cages...

New Jersey dad dies after rescuing his children in river: police

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:24:53 GMT

FRANKLIN TOWNSHIP, N.J. (WPIX) -- A New Jersey father died after rescuing his children from a river Wednesday, police said.The incident happened at the Millstone River around 2:15 p.m., according to the Franklin Township Police Department.Three children — ages 13, 11, and 8 — went into the water and quickly became distressed, witnesses told police. The children's father, a 42-year-old South River man, went into the river and brought his kids to the shallow water, police said. But the father "struggled to maintain his balance" and disappeared in the water, according to police. NYC woman thinks aunt is early victim of Gilgo Beach killer The Somerset County Prosecutor's Office dive team found the man's body around 5:30 p.m., authorities said. The victim's identity hasn't been released.The three children received medical attention at the scene and were released, authorities said.The Franklin Township Police Department is investigating the incident.Earlier this year, an FDNY firefight...

What was inside the illegal medical lab found in California? Photos show blood vials, disease samples

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:24:53 GMT

FRESNO, Calif. (KSEE/KGPE) - Court documents detail the horrors and dangerous nature of an illegal lab found in Reedley, California, exposed several months ago by a city code enforcement officer. What was found inside prompted the fire chief to send a letter to city officials describing it as a "potential disaster for the city."An investigation into the warehouse was prompted by a simple garden hose that was illegally attached and coming out of a wall in the back of the building.“Frankly, we knew that should not have been there and when she went to investigate, she found that there was activity or operation or something happening within that building,” said Reedley City Manager Nicole Zieba.The city then obtained a search warrant to look inside what should have been an ordinary warehouse. Inside, they found thousands of vials, many of which contained bio-hazardous materials like human blood, and other unknown substances. Zoo in China denies that bear in viral video is just a human...

At least one home affected as Powder Keg Pine Fire in Bastrop estimated at 117 acres, 75% contained

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:24:53 GMT

BASTROP, Texas (KXAN) — Crews responded to a home on fire within the fire zone of a wildfire in Bastrop Wednesday just before noon, according to a KXAN reporter on the ground.Reporter Nabil Remadna noted firefighters were able to get there quickly, and there are still hotspots popping up in the fire area. The fire, which is called the Powder Keg Pine Fire, is estimated at 117 acres and is 75% contained as of 7 p.m. Wednesday, according to the Texas A&M Forest Service.In its Wednesday afternoon update, the forest service said gusty winds and afternoon temperatures have increased activity with the fire. Planes continue to drop water to cool those hotspots.Initial reports had the fire's location listed in the area of Highway 71 and Harmon Road. First responders Tuesday afternoon said they were working to evacuate homes as a "precautionary measure" because of a wildfire burning near Bastrop State Park. Evacuees were later allowed to return home and no evacuations are in place as of ...

Allison Schrager: Does it really matter who gets into Harvard?

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:24:53 GMT

Too many Americans — and too many American economists in particular — have an unhealthy obsession with the 1%: how much money they make, how much wealth they have, how they got there, how to join their ranks, and so on.Rising economic inequality is a real problem, and there are understandable reasons for this fixation. But the U.S. would be better off focusing on more important challenges, such as how to increase productivity or improve the economic prospects of the bottom 50%.The latest manifestation of the inequality obsession is the debate over the admissions policies of a handful of elite schools. Last week a new research paper addressed the issue of the 1% directly: It estimates that while children of lower-income families have slightly better odds of getting into elite schools (assuming they have similar scores) than upper middle-class students, children of the 1% have a much better chance than everyone else. This is an issue that is elite almost by definition, sin...

Inside how Kirk Cousins is leading the Vikings at training camp

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:24:53 GMT

A couple of days after the Vikings reported to TCO Performance Center for training camp last week, with everyone searching for ways to build off last season, quarterback Kirk Cousins stood up and took center stage.Not a fan of the spotlight, Cousins had already gone over some of his options with head coach Kevin O’Connell. Maybe he’d simply address his teammates after a random practice. Maybe he’d keep his words limited to offensive players and let a fellow veteran like, say, safety Harrison Smith, talk shop with the defensive players.Not if O’Connell had anything to say about it. He pushed hard for Cousins to deliver a message to the whole team. The result?“You could hear a pin drop in there,” O’Connell said. “Just hearing from our quarterback in that moment as we kicked off training camp was really important.”For the better part of 30 minutes, Cousins talked about the importance of preparation when it comes to succeeding at the...

Redistricting adds surprises to St. Paul City Council races

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:24:53 GMT

When St. Paul voters head to the polls to choose their city council member this November, some may be surprised to discover that they no longer reside in the same political ward they once did.A redistricting process following the last U.S. Census roped in the city’s Charter Commission, minus the late Chuck Repke, who died of cancer in 2021. Some city and county officials have openly acknowledged that Repke — who could alternately engross and infuriate politicos with his eagle-eyed knowledge of procedural minutiae — had a bead on redistricting like few others in St. Paul civic circles.In addition, a process that a decade ago played out over the course of months was truncated into just four weeks in February and March 2022, blamed at the time on delays in getting updated Census data from the federal government and then the state.Council President Amy Brendmoen has spent nearly 12 years representing Ward 5, which spans much of the North End and Como neighborhood. Redi...

Activists, relatives call for firing, arrest of 3 troopers involved in fatal shooting of Black motorist

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:24:53 GMT

Racial justice groups and relatives of a Black man shot and killed this week by a Minnesota State Patrol trooper demanded Wednesday that the governor fire three officers who were involved in stopping the man on a Minneapolis freeway.The groups and relatives of 33-year-old Ricky Cobb II of Plymouth made the demands at a news conference outside the Hennepin County Government Center in Minneapolis, two days after Cobb was killed during a traffic stop.Troopers had pulled over Cobb, who was Black, for driving a Ford Fusion with no taillights early Monday on Interstate 94 in Minneapolis. According to the head of the Minnesota State Patrol, after stopping the car the troopers tried to take Cobbs into custody for allegedly violating a Ramsey County restraining order before fatally shooting him as he began driving away.Black Lives Matter Twin Cities, the Racial Justice Network, Black Lives Matter Minnesota and Cobb’s relatives gathered at the government center to demand that Gov. Tim W...