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Guatemalan electoral magistrates leave the country hours after losing immunity from prosecution

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:02:52 GMT

GUATEMALA CITY (AP) — Three magistrates of Guatemala’s Supreme Electoral Tribunal left the country in the hours after the country’s Congress opened them to prosecution by stripping them of their immunity as the losing side in the presidential election continued its efforts to interfere with the results. A spokesperson for Guatemala’s immigration agency confirmed Friday that the jurists had left Guatemala that day after the Congress voted near midnight Thursday to lift the immunity of four of the court’s five magistrates. The agency did not say where the magistrates had travelled to. None of the magistrates have commented.Blanca Alfara, president of the Supreme Electoral Tribunal, said Friday that two magistrates had requested leave.The magistrates certified the election result but came under pressure from allegations by two attorneys tied to a far-right candidate who did not advance to the runoff round of the presidential election. The attorneys complained that the tribunal overpaid...

Quebec teachers accuse Legault of ’emotional blackmail’ after plea to end strike

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:02:52 GMT

QUEBEC — A striking Quebec teachers union says it won’t give in to “emotional blackmail” from the premier after he asked them to return to work for the good of their students.Premier François Legault told reporters in Quebec City today that he wants the teachers to think of the children who are being harmed by the strike, now into its second week.The union responded on social media, saying its members are striking to prevent the further deterioration of public schools — which they say is what’s really hurting children.The 66,000 members of the Fédération autonome de l’enseignement have been on an unlimited strike since Nov. 23.Union leaders are meeting for a second day today to evaluate the state of their negotiations with the province and evaluate their options.Several other Quebec public sector unions — including one representing another 95,000 teachers — have been holding temporary strikes, with the next one scheduled to take place between Dec. 8 and...

Blue over ‘G0BLUE’: University of Michigan grad sues after losing license plate

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:02:52 GMT

BEVERLY HILLS, Mich. (AP) — A passionate University of Michigan graduate is booing the state — and suing — over the loss of his revered “G0BLUE” car license plate.Joseph Hardig III said the plate has been on family vehicles for years. But he was told it was assigned to another car owner when he recently tried to renew it at a Secretary of State office.“My dad’s passed away. I got it from him. It’s meaningful to me. We’re just huge fans and love the university,” Hardig told The Detroit News.Hardig, a suburban Detroit lawyer, is asking a judge to block the state from giving the plate to an Ann Arbor man, who is also a University of Michigan graduate and lives just minutes from the football stadium.The Secretary of State won’t comment on the lawsuit.Hardig, 65, said he visited a branch office on Nov. 4, a month before the plate renewal deadline, and was told “G0BLUE” was no longer available for his Ford Edge.Blue is a University of Michigan color, and “Go Blue!” is a battle cry a...

Man escapes from Philadelphia jail by walking away from orchard in fourth city breakout this year

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:02:52 GMT

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Police were searching on Friday for an inmate who escaped from a Philadelphia jail by walking away from a work detail, the fourth breakout from a city lockup this year.Gino Hagenkotter, 34, who was serving time on theft and burglary charges, was working in the orchard on the grounds of the Philadelphia Industrial Correctional Center in northeast Philadelphia shortly before noon Thursday when he asked the guard assigned to him for permission to use the bathroom, said Blanche Carney, commissioner of the Philadelphia Department of Prisons.After Hagenkotter failed to return, the guard checked the restroom, but he wasn’t there, officials said. Hagenkotter scaled a fence, walked through a city sanitation department yard next to the prison, took off his jumpsuit and was last seen on surveillance video walking down the street, according to Deputy Police Commissioner Frank Vanore.No one was hurt.Vanore said Hagenkotter does not have “any dangerous history,” but offi...

‘I’m a micro-manufacturer’: Canadian-owned company changes the game plan to stay alive

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:02:52 GMT

In 1981, Paul Vella, who immigrated from Malta and spoke little English, was working as a foreman at an Ontario manufacturing plant when he got some tough news.“The plant where he worked was shutting down,” his son David Paul Vella said. “He was sad. I was happy because I said, ‘Dad, now’s our chance’.”That chance was creating their own company, something the younger Vella had wanted to do, even though he was just 17 at the time.“I was still in high school but my dad had the skills and knew how to create and spin quality pizza pans,” said Vella.They saw an opportunity.“There weren’t many companies that continued to make the pans, so we decided to create our own company.”They started in a garage, then eventually moved to a small facility on Norfinch Drive in North York, which was the start of a company called Crown Cookware, now located in Etobicoke.“We bought some of the equipment from my father’s company that was shutting down, we still have some of that today,” s...

Climate protesters twice interrupt Wagner’s `Tannhäuser’ at Metropolitan Opera

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:02:52 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — Climate protesters caused a pair of interruptions totaling 22 minutes during the opening night of a revival of Wagner’s “Tannhäuser” at the Metropolitan Opera.Christian Gerhaher, a German baritone making his Met Opera debut, was singing Wolfram’s second-act aria on Thursday night in which he says “und sieh, mir zeiget sich ein wunderbronnen (before me a miraculous spring appears)” when people on either side of the balcony unfurled long vertical banners with white capital letters on a black background.“NO OPERA ON A DEAD PLANET,” read the one on the north side of the 4,000-capacity auditorium. Met general manager Peter Gelb said Friday the other banner had the name of the group, Extinction Rebellion NY, which took responsibility.“Wake up! The spring is polluted,” one protester shouted. “The spring is tainted! The spring is poisoned! This is a climate emergency! This is a climate crisis! There will be no opera on a dead planet!”Yelled another: “...

Hezbollah and Israeli troops exchange fire along the border as 2 people are killed in Lebanon

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:02:52 GMT

BEIRUT (AP) — Lebanon’s militant Hezbollah group attacked several Israeli army posts along the two countries’ border and Israel shelled a village in southern Lebanon on Friday, killing two Lebanese citizens, officials said.It was the first time Hezbollah launched attacks on Israeli troops along the Lebanon-Israel border since the start of a seven-day truce between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas, an ally of Hezbollah. That cease-fire collapsed on Friday, plunging the Israel-Hamas conflict back into open combat. Israel’s military said it hit the sources of the fire directed at the military. Lebanese security officials, meanwhile, said a woman and her son died when Israeli shells hit their home in the southern village of Houla. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity in line with regulations. Lebanon’s state news agency identified the woman and her son as Nasifa Mazraani and Mohammed Mazraani. Hezbollah later announced that Mohammed Mazraani was a fig...

COVID shot likely prevented thousands of premature births: study

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:02:52 GMT

(NewsNation) — A new study found the COVID-19 vaccine may have prevented thousands of premature births. The authors found that COVID-19 infection during pregnancy increased the risk of preterm birth, which can have lifelong consequences for infants. A fetus exposed to COVID-19 in the womb can also lead to health problems.The study, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, found the increase of preterm births that happened during the COVID-19 pandemic dropped in 2022, likely as the result of vaccinations. Researchers also found that in places with early adoption of the vaccine, the level of preterm births dropped even earlier. Congress considers bill banning housing migrants on federal land Researchers acknowledged some limitations, including the fact that infection during pregnancy varied because different populations had different levels of risk, based on factors including socioeconomic status. The fact that COVID-19 may be asymptomatic and testing requi...

White House Christmas tree shines bright at lighting ceremony

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:02:52 GMT

WASHINGTON (NEXSTAR) – President Joe Biden and first lady Dr. Jill Biden kicked off the unofficial start of the holiday season at the lighting ceremony for the White House Christmas tree Thursday.The 40-foot Norway spruce, cut from the Monongahela National Forest in West Virginia, survived an unexpected tumble Tuesday. Luckily, that was the only drama as the tree lighting went off without a hitch.“Jill announced the theme of this year's holiday at the White House: Magic, Wonder and Joy,” the president said. “Three words that capture the essence of Christmas and the holidays to rediscover for ourselves, the simple joys of the season; from familiar songs to favorite recipes to open the hearts of the simple acts of kindness.” Disney+ unveils new subscriber-only perks for the holiday season Grammy-nominated country singer Mickey Guyton hosted the event, which featured performances by the U.S. Coast Guard’s Guardians Big Band, Darren Criss, Samara Joy, Ledisi, Reneé Rapp, St. Vincen...

Appeals court rules Trump doesn't have immunity from civil suits over Jan. 6 riots

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:02:52 GMT

(The Hill) - Former President Trump is not immune from civil lawsuits blaming him for the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol, an appeals court ruled Friday.The appellate court was asked to decide whether Trump’s false claims of election fraud and rallying cry for supporters to gather at the Capitol and “fight like hell” was outside his presidential responsibilities, meaning he could be held liable for it under U.S. Supreme Court precedent. A three-judge panel affirmed unanimously that Trump’s post-election efforts to subvert the 2020 election results were done in his capacity as a presidential candidate — not a president.“When a first-term President opts to seek a second term, his campaign to win re-election is not an official presidential act,” Chief Judge Sri Srinivasan of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia wrote in an opinion.The appeals panel noted that Trump himself recognized his campaign to win re-election was in his personal capacity, citi...