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Ex-ambassador charged with serving as secret agent for Cuba’s intelligence services for decades

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:45:59 GMT

MIAMI (AP) — A former American diplomat who served as U.S. ambassador to Bolivia has been charged with serving as a covert agent for Cuba’s intelligence services dating back decades, the Justice Department said Monday.Newly unsealed court papers allege that Manuel Rocha engaged in “clandestine activity” on Cuba’s behalf since at least 1981, including by meeting with Cuban intelligence operatives and providing false information to U.S. government officials.The complaint, filed in federal court in Miami, charges Rocha with acting as an illegal agent of a foreign government. The 73-year-old had a 25-year career as a U.S. diplomat, including top posts in Bolivia, Argentina and the U.S. Interests Section in HavanaHe is due in court later Monday. It was not immediately clear if he had a lawyer.Source

A former American diplomat has been charged with serving as a secret agent for Cuban intelligence dating back decades

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:45:59 GMT

MIAMI (AP) — A former American diplomat has been charged with serving as a secret agent for Cuban intelligence dating back decades.Source

Former top Ohio utility regulator is indicted in $60 million bribery scheme linked to energy bill

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:45:59 GMT

CINCINNATI (AP) — Former top Ohio utility regulator is indicted in $60 million bribery scheme linked to energy bill.Source

Guinea-Bissau’s president issues a decree dissolving the opposition-controlled parliament

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:45:59 GMT

BISSAU, Guinea-Bissau (AP) — Guinea-Bissau President Umaro Sissoco Embalo issued a decree Monday dissolving the nation’s opposition-controlled parliament, less than six months after it was reconstituted following a similar move by the president in 2022.Embalo cited last week’s shootout between troops loyal to him and forces controlled by the parliament, which he described as a failed coup.“The date for holding the next legislative elections will be set in due time in accordance with the provisions of … the Constitution,” the decree stated. “This Presidential Decree comes into force immediately.”The order referred to the “seriousness,” of a shootout that started in the capital, Bissau, between members of the Presidential Palace Battalion and the National Guard as the former tried to rearrest two ministers under investigation for alleged corruption who had been released from custody by the latter.The leadership of the parliament rejected the president’s move, noting that t...

Buckeyes’ McCord biggest name in transfer portal as undergrad players begin search for new schools

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:45:59 GMT

Ohio State quarterback Kyle McCord entered his name into the transfer portal Monday, the first day undergraduate football players could do so.The Buckeyes’ season-long starter was the biggest name in the portal.McCord beat out Devin Brown for the starter’s job in the preseason and threw for 3,170 yards and 24 touchdowns with six interceptions. Two of the interceptions came in the 30-24 loss to Michigan on Nov. 25.Ohio State coach Ryan Day was non-committal Sunday when asked if the junior quarterback would play in the Buckeyes’ game against Missouri in the Cotton Bowl.McCord’s best moment came when he led Ohio State’s 65-yard drive for the winning touchdown as time ran out in a 17-14 win over Notre Dame in September.“I think he’s a good quarterback, I do,” Day said. “After every year, you evaluate everything, and try to figure out what to do next. But I think there was a lot of progress made this year.”McCord’s teammate, running back Evan Por...

Air Force to face James Madison University in Armed Forces Bowl

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:45:59 GMT

DENVER (KDVR) — On Dec. 23, the Air Force Academy Falcons will face the James Madison University Dukes in the "Bowl for the Brave."The Lockheed Martin Armed Forces Bowl is a bowl game that features patriotic overtones and recognizes all six branches of the service. So, it is fitting that the Air Force will play again this year. The last time the Falcons played at the Armed Forces Bowl was in 2022 when they defeated Baylor University 30-15. This will be the Air Force's record seventh appearance in the bowl game.This is the first time JMU is playing in a bowl game and the first time the two teams have ever played each other. Sanders wins Sportsperson of Year award from Sports Illustrated for starting turnaround at Colorado "We are extremely pleased to announce that James Madison and Air Force will compete in the Lockheed Martin Armed Forces Bowl," Executive Director Brant Ringler said. "We are excited that we will have two very deserving, proud programs joining us in Fort Worth as w...

Colorado School of Mines ranked No. 1 going into semifinals

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:45:59 GMT

DENVER (KDVR) — On Saturday, the Colorado School of Mines Orediggers secured its spot in the NCAA Division II Football Semifinals and are ranked No. 1 in the country going into next Saturday's game.After the team's win against Central Washington University on Dec. 2, it's the first time in program history the team hit a record of 13 wins and zero losses.This is the Orediggers' third consecutive trip to the NCAA semifinals. Mines quarterback breaks all-time NCAA record for total touchdowns In 2022, the Orediggers ended up in the NCAA II finals against Ferris State. With the final score of 14-41, the team couldn't pull out a win.This is similar to the finals in 2021, where the team lost a close game to Valdosta State in the semifinals.While the Orediggers are back in the running this year, 2023 is different.Not only is the team ranked No. 1 for the first time in the program's history, but it also has a new record under its belt.In November 2023, quarterback John Matocha broke the re...

Suspect arrested after high-speed pursuit ends in Fort Lauderdale crash; deputy, woman injured

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:45:59 GMT

A high-speed pursuit in Fort Lauderdale concluded with a crash at the intersection of Commercial Boulevard and Powerline Road, leaving a Broward Sheriff’s Office (BSO) deputy injured and several others hurt. The incident unfolded in Lauderdale Lakes on Northwest 41st Street and 31st Avenue, Monday morning. Video footage from the scene showed authorities surrounding the silver Camry, which reportedly hit multiple cars before coming to a stop. Preliminary reports suggest the pursuit started when BSO deputies initiated a chase of a silver Toyota Camry suspected of being involved in an aggravated assault. The pursuit led officers eastbound on Northwest 44th Street from State Road 7.Several individuals, including a woman caught in the middle of the chase and a BSO deputy, sustained injuries. The chase ended in a crash at Commercial Boulevard and Powerline Road, causing traffic to come to a standstill.The driver of the Camry fled on foot after the crash and was apprehended behind a ...

Want to work in the UK? You’ll need to earn £38,700 under Tory plan

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:45:59 GMT

LONDON — U.K. Home Secretary James Cleverly has unveiled a steep hike in the minimum salary overseas workers will need to earn to work in the U.K.Unveiling a raft of new measures as the governing Conservative Party fights to show it is getting a grip on record legal migration numbers, Cleverly announced that the current salary threshold for a skilled visa will rise from £26,200 to £38,700 from spring 2024, except for those coming to work in the health and social care sectors.The move puts the threshold nearly £4,000 higher than the average U.K. salary of £34,963, and marks a sharp change in direction from the post-Brexit regime meant to favor skilled workers.Net migration hit a new record high of 672,000 in the year ending June 2023, according to the latest official estimates, despite a promise by the Conservatives to tame the numbers in their 2019 manifesto.It means the government is under mounting pressure from its own MPs to act.Announcing a “five point plan” in ...

In Ukraine war arms race, US stalls as Israel, Turkey and South Korea surge

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:45:59 GMT

The West has pledged to do whatever it takes to support Ukraine while also returning militaries to a war-ready status, but it is defense contractors in South Korea, Turkey and Israel which are reaping many of the early deals.Arms makers in those countries, where governments sustain military investment and production pipelines to maintain their own security, made early gains in the months following the February 2022 full-scale invasion of Ukraine by Russia, according to the latest analysis of weapon sales and military services revenue from the world’s top 100 contractors carried out by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI).“South Korea, Israel, Turkey are countries that stand out as being able to respond to the increased expenditure,” said Lucie Béraud-Sudreau, who helped compile the data for SIPRI as part of an annual update that’s been ongoing since the end of the Cold War.Turkey’s four largest defense companies saw their 2022 revenues rise by 22 percen...