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Mexican authorities search for 31 migrants abducted near the Texas border

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 15:52:30 GMT

MEXICO CITY (AP) — Mexican authorities said Wednesday they are searching for 31 migrants from five countries who were abducted over the weekend from a bus near the Texas border.The National Guard, Army and Navy are participating in the search, but there have been few advances, Federal Security Secretary Rosa Icela Rodríguez said.On Dec. 30, armed and masked men stopped the bus on the highway that connects the border cities of Reynosa and Matamoros, Rodríguez said. They made all 36 people aboard get off and then took 31 of them away in five vehicles.The abducted migrants were from Ecuador, Colombia, Venezuela, Honduras and Mexico, she said.Colombian President Gustavo Petro said Tuesday that four Colombians were among the abducted.Rodríguez said authorities had tried to track the migrants’ cell phones, reviewed surveillance video from the bus and scanned the area by helicopter for signs of the missing.The bus had left the northern city of Monterrey and had a final destination of Matam...

Sierra Leone’s former president charged with treason for alleged involvement in failed coup attempt

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 15:52:30 GMT

FREETOWN, Sierra Leone (AP) — Former President Ernest Bai Koroma has been charged with treason for his alleged involvement in a failed coup attempt in November, Sierra Leone’s government said Wednesday.Koroma has also been charged with misprision of treason, which is the crime of concealing knowledge of treasonable acts, according to a statement from the ministry of information and civic education.On Nov. 26, dozens of gunmen launched an attack in the West African nation’s capital of Freetown during which they broke into Sierra Leone’s key armory and into a prison where the majority of the more than 2,000 inmates were freed.At least 18 members of the security forces were killed during the clashes. More than 50 suspects, including military officers, have been arrested so far.The charges against Koroma were announced a day after a dozen people were charged with similar offenses in connection with the failed coup. Although he has officially retired from politics, Koroma remains a...

What’s known, and what remains unclear, about the deadly explosions in Iran

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 15:52:30 GMT

Here’s what’s known — and what remains unclear — about Wednesday’s deadly explosions in Iran:• Authorities say the twin bombings killed at least 103 people and wounded 211 others.• The attack is the deadliest to strike Iran since its 1979 Islamic Revolution.• The second explosion occurred about 20 minutes after the first, which is often a technique used by militants to harm both civilians and emergency responders after an initial assault.• The attack came during commemorations for the fourth anniversary of the killing of Gen. Qassem Soleimani, the head of the Revolutionary Guard’s elite Quds Force, in a U.S. drone strike in neighboring Iraq. The explosions occurred near his grave site as long lines of people gathered for the event.• No group has claimed responsibility for the attack in Kerman.• Iran has faced targeted killings and sabotage attacks suspected to have been carried out by Israel. However, those assaults did not include mass casualty bombings like Wednesday’s attack.• Su...

Speaker Johnson leads House GOP on a trip to a Texas border city as Ukraine aid hangs in the balance

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 15:52:30 GMT

EAGLE PASS, Texas (AP) — U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson is leading about 60 fellow Republicans in Congress on a visit Wednesday to the Mexican border as they demand hard-line immigration policies in exchange for backing President Joe Biden’s emergency wartime funding request for Ukraine. The trip to Eagle Pass, Texas, comes as Senate negotiators keep plugging away in hopes of a bipartisan deal.With the number of illegal crossings into the United States topping 10,000 on several days last month, the border city has been at the center of Republican Gov. Greg Abbott’s Operation Lone Star, his nearly $10 billion initiative that has tested the federal government’s authority over immigration and elevated the political fight over the issue.An agreement in the lengthy talks in Washington would unlock GOP support for Biden’s $110 billion package for Ukraine, Israel and other U.S. security priorities. In meetings, Sens. Kyrsten Sinema, I-Ariz, James Lankford, R-Okla., and Chris M...

Two men killed in Montreal alleged hit-and-run identified; suspect to return to court

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 15:52:30 GMT

MONTREAL — A Namibian man returning home from church and a second man have been identified as the two people killed in an early morning New Year’s Day hit-and-run in Montreal.Court documents identify the two victims as Michael Chintakis and Augustin Wesley Katimba, who police said were both in their early 30s. Suspect Antoine Dubuc, 23, is expected to appear today in court where he’s facing charges of dangerous driving causing death, fleeing the scene of a deadly collision and impaired driving causing death. Namibia’s ambassador to the United States identified Wesley Katimba in a Facebook post as a member of the Namibian diaspora, and said he was returning home from church when he was struck in Montreal’s Ahuntsic-Cartierville borough shortly after 1 a.m. Monday.Ambassador Margaret Mensah-Williams added that Wesley Katimba had just celebrated a birthday the day prior, on Dec. 31.Montreal police say the suspect allegedly struck the two pedestrians at high spee...

Toronto fire chief warns of lithium-ion batteries’ risks after e-bike fire on TTC subway

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 15:52:30 GMT

Toronto’s fire chief says fires sparked by lithium-ion batteries are a growing concern after a recent blaze aboard a subway train showed how quickly flames sparked by a faulty battery can spread.Videos posted on social media showed flames raging inside a Toronto subway train, with smoke billowing from a train car, on New Year’s Eve.Should e-bikes/e-scooters etc. be allowed on public transit? I spoke to the witness who took this video of Sunday’s fire on the TTC as an e-bike ignited. The full story @CityNewsTO here: https://t.co/NjiD1S3can pic.twitter.com/4h2m8mvzFn— Michelle Mackey (@michellemackey) January 2, 2024Fire Chief Matthew Pegg says that the fire was caused by the failure of a lithium-ion battery powering an e-bike and was put out by fire crews on Sunday afternoon. He says one person was hurt and treated for non-life-threatening injuries by paramedics.  Pegg says faulty batteries are causing more fires in Toronto, with 55 fires in the city last ...

Uganda’s military says an attack helicopter crashed into a house, killing the crew and a civilian

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 15:52:30 GMT

KAMPALA, Uganda (AP) — A Ugandan military helicopter being used in the fight against Islamic extremists in neighboring Congo crashed into a Ugandan house on Tuesday, killing both crew members and a civilian in the building, Uganda’s military said.The cause of the attack helicopter’s crash in the western district of Ntoroko near the border is suspected to be bad weather, said Brig Felix Kulayigye, spokesperson for the Uganda People’s Defense Forces.In a statement, Kulayigye said the helicopter was flying to Congo, where Uganda’s military is fighting the Allied Democratic Forces, an extremist group allied to the Islamic State organization.”The crew died heroes as they participated in the struggle to pacify our western frontier of the dreadful ADF,” he said.Several Ugandan military helicopters have crashed in recent years, with the military often blaming bad weather. In September 2022, two military helicopters being used to fight the ADF crashed in eastern Congo, killing 22...

What you need to know about Bill C-53 and the recognition of Métis self-government

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 15:52:30 GMT

OTTAWA — The committee process for a testy piece of legislation that would recognize Métis governments in three provinces has been extended until at least February.House of Commons committee hearings about Bill C-53 have seen 65 witnesses testify and 274 briefs submitted that argue vigorously either for or against the legislation.Members of Parliament are now arguing over the finer points of the bill during meetings devoted to clause-by-clause deliberation — seven of them so far, featuring hours of debate.Some First Nations groups are opposed to the bill, which would recognize Métis governments in Ontario, Alberta and Saskatchewan, urging MPs to vote against it because they say it could erode their own rights.But Métis Nation of Ontario president Margaret Froh says Métis people have been fighting for their rights for generations, and the passage of the bill would help recognize that. The hotly contested legislation also has support from the Métis National Council, which unanimously ...

Puerto Rico comptroller strikes down popular slogan used by governor’s office

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 15:52:30 GMT

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — A widely used slogan by the office of Puerto Rico’s governor that sparked heavy criticism across the U.S. territory has been struck down this election year, the electoral comptroller’s office said Wednesday.The phrase “Making things happen” can no longer appear on ads launched by the administration of Gov. Pedro Pierluisi, who is seeking a second term.Walter Vélez, who oversees the office, told reporters that the slogan could allude to goals or achievements and, as a result, should not be used. He noted there’s a limit to using public funds for election-related advertising.A spokeswoman for Pierluisi did not immediately return a message seeking comment.A lawsuit filed last year by the main opposition Popular Democratic Party alleging that more than $3 million in public funds have been used to promote the slogan is pending in court.The Associated Press

Police seek shooter after imam is critically wounded outside mosque in Newark, New Jersey

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 15:52:30 GMT

NEWARK, N.J. (AP) — A New Jersey imam was shot and critically wounded Wednesday outside a mosque in the state’s largest city, authorities said as officers worked to identify and arrest the shooter. The cleric was shot after 6 a.m. outside the Masjid-Muhammad-Newark Mosque, Newark Public Safety Director Fritz Fragé said in an emailed statement. Police didn’t immediately identify the victim, who was taken to nearby University Hospital and is in critical condition, authorities said.Hours later, police had no one in custody. It’s unclear what led to the violence and if the imam was targeted. Fragé said the shooting is under investigation and no other information is available. A message seeking more information was left with the mosque. The New Jersey chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, the nation’s largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization, said it is gathering information and urged people to contact local police. “We are deeply concerned ...