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UN calls attacks near Gaza hospital ‘reprehensible’ as cease-fire demands grow

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:41:10 GMT

As Israel pummels Gaza’s Al-Shifa Hospital in the north of the Palestinian enclave, global organizations are rallying behind calls for an immediate cease-fire in the war against Hamas.The World Health Organization said in the early hours of Sunday morning that it had lost contact with the 700-bed Al-Shifa health care facility, one of the largest in Gaza, pointing to reports of those leaving the scene being shot.“As horrifying reports of the hospital facing repeated attacks continue to emerge, we assume our contacts joined tens of thousands of displaced people and are fleeing the area,” the WHO posted on X.Israel claims Hamas has installed armed command centers inside hospitals and other civilian facilities, but Doctors Without Borders said that Al-Shifa, which includes maternity and outpatient areas providing emergency and surgical care, had been targeted with power cuts while access for ambulances or evacuation had been cut too.“This is unconscionable, reprehensible and must ...

Negotiations set to resume after no deal reached in Andover teachers strike

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:41:10 GMT

Negotiations are set to resume Sunday afternoon between bargaining teams for the Andover Education Association and Andover School Committee after members were unable to reach a contract agreement after another day of negotiating on Saturday.The marathon bargaining session came after union members voted to strike, prompting the closure of schools on Friday and a community rally that drew more than 1,000 people to Andover Town Common. Negotiations are expected to resume at 12:30 p.m. on Sunday.In a statement, the Andover Education Association said, “Our strike vote has initiated the kind of bargaining we have wanted for months. We have a lot of ground to cover, but both sides are talking and that is because the community has voiced its support for what educators are fighting for. We want to be back in our classrooms as quickly as possible. The Andover School Committee can make that happen by reaching fair agreements on wages, especially fo...

Police: 2 men arrested after fentanyl, crack found during search in Roxbury

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:41:10 GMT

Two Boston men are facing criminal charges after officers executing a search warrant in Roxbury on Friday found a large quantity of illegal drugs and a loaded handgun, police said.Officers executing a search warrant in the area of 111 Homestead St. around 12 p.m. found 95 grams of fentanyl, 237 grams of crack cocaine, 67 various pills, 6 plastic bags of marijuana, and more than $4,000 in cash, along with a Sig Sauer P365 with 11 rounds in the magazine, according to Boston police.Keon Leary, 44, of Boston, and Christopher Brown, 56, of Roxbury were arrested as a result of the search.Leary was arrested on charges of trafficking Class A, trafficking Class B, unlawful possession of a firearm, unlawful possession of ammunition, unlawful possession of a large capacity feeding device, possession with intent to distribute Class B, possession with intent to distribute Class C, and possession with intent to distribute Class D. Brown was arrested on charges of trafficking Class A, trafficking ...

Guhle scores in OT to lift Canadiens to 3-2 win over Bruins

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:41:10 GMT

MONTREAL (AP) — Kaiden Guhle scored the unassisted game winner in overtime to lift the Montreal Canadiens to a 3-2 win over the Boston Bruins on Saturday night.“Like every team you have some off games, but our good is really good. When we’re on top of it, we can beat any team in the league,” Guhle said.Nick Suzuki and Brendan Gallagher also found the back of the net for Montreal (7-5-2), which beat Boston (11-1-2) for the first time since the 2019-2020 season.“It’s a group decision and a group effort to get back in a game and get something out of it,” said Canadiens coach Martin St Louis. “You have to understand the way you need to carry yourself on the ice every game to give yourself the best chance of winning. It doesn’t guarantee a win, but you understand what is needed to be done with and without the puck.”Pavel Zacha deflected a point shot from Charlie McAvoy past Montreal goalie Samuel Montembeault and into the top corner just 36 seconds into the game to give the Bruins a 1-0 ...

Joe Biden wants to complete his goals on civil rights, taxes, and social services if he’s reelected

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:41:10 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden has a simple reelection pitch to voters — let him “finish the job.”So what does that mean? What’s left for him to get done?Unlike Donald Trump, the front-runner for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination who has been releasing videos and statements detailing his agenda, Biden hasn’t formally released his plans as part of his campaign.But his ambitions are no secret, and his goals for child care, community college and prescription drugs have been laid out in detail during the Democrat’s his first term. He also has unfulfilled promises on civil rights, such as protecting access to the ballot box, preventing police misconduct and restoring the nationwide right to abortion. Banning firearms known as assault rifles remains a priority as well.The result is a second-term agenda that could look a lot like Biden’s first-term agenda, with some of the same political challenges. Almost none of this can get done without coope...

Saturday’s high school tournament scores and highlights

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:41:10 GMT

HIGHLIGHTS FIELD HOCKEYIn the Div. 2 quarterfinals, Karissa Albin scored twice, while Ryan Crook collected three assists for No. 3 Somerset Berkley (20-0-1) in a 4-2 win over No. 6 Dartmouth (19-1-0).Emily Carney, Chloe Essam and Raena Crandall scored, while Devon Barry recorded four saves as Franklin (20-0-1) defeated Acton-Boxboro 3-0 in a Div. 1 quarterfinal.FOOTBALLQuinn Carver ran 24 times for 229 yards and four scores as Dexter Southfield (7-1) upended Pingree 42-13 in Evergreen League play.In the Independent Schools League, Hugo Djeumeni rushed for 427 yards and seven touchdowns on 25 carries as Tabor defeated Brooks, 53-20. … Marcus Griffin ran for two scores as Belmont Hill (7-1) defeated Governor’s Academy, 41-21. … Ty Ciongoli threw a pair of TD passes as part of a 28-point second quarter as St. Sebastian’s (4-4) defeated Thayer Academy, 35-12.BOYS SOCCERWill McManus netted two goals as No. 4 Pembroke (17-2-1) blanked No. 5 Ashland 2-0 in the Div. 3 quarterfinals mat...

What they want: Biden and Xi are looking for clarity in an increasingly difficult relationship

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:41:10 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden and China’s Xi Jinping have no shortage of difficult issues to discuss when they sit down for their first talks in a year, even if expectations are low that their meeting will lead to major breakthroughs.Each leader has clear objectives for the highly anticipated talks Wednesday on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit, a meeting that comes after what’s been a fractious year for the world’s two biggest economies.Both Biden and Xi are looking to bring a greater measure of stability to a relationship that is being defined by differences over export controls, tensions over Taiwan, the wars in the Middle East and Europe, and more.A look at what each president is hoping to achieve during their talks:WHAT BIDEN WANTSThe White House has made clear that the U.S.-China relationship is beyond the days where a meeting ends with a long list of announcements and agreements.Instead, Biden comes to San Francisco focused on managing the ...

Russia ramps up attacks on key cities in eastern Ukraine

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:41:10 GMT

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Russian forces have ramped up attacks in eastern Ukraine in an attempt to gain ground near two key front line cities, Ukrainian military officials said Sunday. Moscow’s troops have begun a push to regain territory near Bakhmut, the eastern mining city that was the site of the war’s bloodiest battle before falling into Russian hands in May, the head of Ukraine’s ground forces wrote on the Telegram messaging app. Ukrainian troops had recaptured the heights over Bakhmut and made some advances to the city’s west, north and south since Kyiv launched its summer counteroffensive. “Toward Bakhmut, the Russians have become more active and are trying to recapture previously lost positions. … Enemy attacks are being repelled,” Col. Gen. Oleksandr Syrskyi wrote in a Telegram update on Sunday afternoon.Ukraine’s long-awaited counteroffensive has so far resulted in only incremental gains and heavy losses, with Ukrainian troops struggling to punch through Rus...

Trump’s plans if he returns to the White House include deportation raids, tariffs and mass firings

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:41:10 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — A mass deportation operation. A new Muslim ban. Tariffs on all imported goods and “freedom cities” built on federal land. Much of the 2024 presidential campaign has been dominated by the myriad investigations into former President Donald Trump and the subsequent charges against him. But with less than a year until Election Day, Trump is dominating the race for the Republican nomination and has already laid out a sweeping set of policy goals should he win a second term.His ideas, and even the issues he focuses on most, are wildly different from President Joe Biden’s proposals. If implemented, Trump’s plans would represent a dramatic government overhaul arguably more consequential than that of his first term. His presidency, especially the early days, was marked by chaos, infighting and a wave of hastily written executive orders that were quickly overturned by the courts.Some of his current ideas would probably end up in court or impeded by Cong...

Macron urges France to rise up against ‘unbearable resurgence of antisemitism’ before Paris march

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:41:10 GMT

PARIS (AP) — President Emmanuel Macron has called on the French people to rise up against anti-Jewish acts ahead of a march in the capital later on Sunday to protest against rising antisemitism. Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne and numerous other politicians are to attend the march in the French capital. Paris authorities have deployed 3,000 police troops along the route of the protest called by the leaders of the Senate and parliament’s lower house, the National Assembly, amid an alarming increase in anti-Jewish acts in France since the start of Israel’s war against Hamas after its Oct. 7 surprise attack on Israel.French authorities have registered a more than 1,000 acts against Jews around the country in a month since the conflict in the Middle East began. In a letter addressed to the French on Sunday, and vowed that perpetrators will be prosecuted and punished. “A France where our Jewish fellow citizens are afraid is not France,” Macron said in the letter, published in Le Parisien ...