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Court voids fine given to Russian activist for criticizing war and sends case back to prosecutors

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:25:31 GMT

TALLINN, Estonia (AP) — A court in Russia on Thursday overturned a fine handed to a veteran human rights advocate for speaking out against the war in Ukraine and sent Oleg Orlov’s case back to prosecutors, who have sought to imprison him for three years instead. Orlov, co-chairman of the Nobel Peace Prize-winning human rights group Memorial, was convicted of publicly “discrediting” the Russian military after he posted on Facebook an article he wrote that denounced the invasion of Ukraine. He has rejected the charge as politically motivated. The Moscow City Court’s voiding of the fine did not represent a decision in his favor bur rather another step in a years-long, unrelenting crackdown on dissent in Russia that the Kremlin ratcheted up after sending troops into Ukraine in February 2022. In October, a lower court fined Orlov 150,000 rubles (about $1,500 at the time), which is a significantly milder punishment compared to lengthy prison terms some other Russians have gott...

Hungry, thirsty and humiliated: Israel’s mass arrest campaign sows fear in northern Gaza

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:25:31 GMT

DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — The Israeli military has rounded up hundreds of Palestinians across the northern Gaza Strip, separating families and forcing men to strip to their underwear before trucking some to a detention camp on the beach, where they spent hours, in some cases days, subjected to hunger and cold, according to human rights activists, distraught relatives and released detainees themselves.Palestinians detained in the shattered town of Beit Lahiya, the urban refugee camp of Jabaliya and neighborhoods of Gaza City said they were bound, blindfolded and bundled into the backs of trucks. Some said they were taken to the camp at an undisclosed location, nearly naked and with little water.“We were treated like cattle, they even wrote numbers on our hands,” said Ibrahim Lubbad, a 30-year-old computer engineer arrested in Beit Lahiya on Dec. 7 with a dozen other family members and held overnight. “We could feel their hatred.” The roundups have laid bare an emerging t...

Set of 6 Messi World Cup shirts sells for $7.8 million at auction in New York

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:25:31 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — Six jerseys worn by soccer superstar Lionel Messi during Argentina’s winning run at last year’s World Cup sold Thursday for $7.8 million, the auction house Sotheby’s announced.The final price for the shirts, each worn during the first half of one of Argentina’s games at the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar, is the highest price for an item of sports memorabilia this year, Sotheby’s said.Argentina defeated France in a penalty shootout after a 3-3 draw in the World Cup final, winning its third World Cup.The victory, in which Messi scored two of Argentina’s three goals, represented a crowning moment for one of the sport’s greatest-ever players.“These historic shirts are not only a tangible reminder of one of the most important moments in the history of sports, but are principally connected to the pinnacle moment in the career of the most decorated football player in history,” Brahm Wachter, Sotheby’s head of modern collectible...

Former Michigan GOP chair testifies in false electors preliminary examinations

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:25:31 GMT

LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Michigan’s former state GOP chair testified Thursday that she approved a document saying the state’s Republican electors would cast votes for then-President Donald Trump if Michigan’s 2020 election results were overturned.But Laura Cox said that document was ceremonial in nature and required a triggering event such as a court overturning Joe Biden’s win.Cox’s testimony came on the second day of a preliminary hearing in the case against 15 of the Republicans, who face charges including forgery for allegedly serving as false electors. A state police captain and Michigan’s elections director testified on Wednesday. Investigators say the group signed a document during a meeting at the Michigan GOP headquarters on Dec. 14, 2020, falsely stating they were the state’s “duly elected and qualified electors.” Cox testified that conversations about assembling a slate of Republican electors began early that December, and that she approved anot...

Former NFL player Adam ‘Pacman’ Jones reaches plea deal over airport incident

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:25:31 GMT

BURLINGTON, Ky. (AP) — Former NFL player Adam “Pacman” Jones reached a plea agreement on a disorderly conduct charge Thursday after he was removed from a plane before takeoff at the Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky Airport in September.Jones, who played most of his career as a defensive back for the Cincinnati Bengals, was sentenced to 30 days in jail as part of the deal but that time is suspended as long has he has no unlawful conduct at the airport for two years, according to media reports.Jones was charged in September on misdemeanor counts of alcohol intoxication, disorderly conduct and terroristic threatening. Police were called to the airport at 6 a.m. after crew members complained of an unruly passenger on a departing flight.Jones told WKRC-TV that he asked to be moved to another seat because a phone charger wasn’t working. He denied being intoxicated.Jones played 12 seasons in the NFL, first with the Tennessee Titans, Dallas Cowboys and Bengals. He was suspended for the entire 2...

17-year-old charged in crash that killed 2 South Elgin High School students

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:25:31 GMT

KANE COUNTY, Ill. — A 17-year-old has been charged in a crash that killed two Elgin teens in August.The Kane County State's Attorney's Office announced Thursday 17-year-old Aanomeya Jacquline D. Henry has been charged with aggravated DUI and reckless homicide.The State's Attorney's Office said Henry was driving herself and three passengers in a Honda Civic around 7 a.m. on August 31 near the intersection of Route 25 and Kenyon Road in Bartlett. Related: ‘I’m still trying to cope’: Family member of South Elgin teen killed in crash speaks out According to a statement from the state's attorney, Henry failed to yield and collided with a truck, which struck the Honda and pushed it into a cornfield. Two of the passengers were killed. The Kane County coroner identified the victims as 16-year-old Tahlulay Henry and 17-year-old Kamorra Campbell. The teens were students at South Elgin High School.The third passenger was injured. Previous Coverage: 2 South Elgin High School students kille...

Referendum reconsidering Chicago as Welcoming City appealed

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:25:31 GMT

CHICAGO — City council gathered for a special meeting Thursday to discuss Chicago's status as a Sanctuary city and decided to repeal the referendum reconsidering Chicago as a Welcoming city.The alderpeople involved in the initial consideration wanted to give power to voters and allow them to decide if Chicago should remain a Welcoming City."It is a shame that you all are scared. What are you sacred of, to let people have a voice? What are you scared of, the truth," Beale asked. The majority of people who attended the meeting were in support of not reconsidering Chicago's Sanctuary city status. Therefore, the Sanctuary city referendum question will not be on the March primary ballot.Chicago has been a Sanctuary city since 1985 since former mayor Harold Washington issued the executive order that is made sure to protect undocumented immigrants regardless of their immigration status. Mayor Brandon Johnson faces rising pressure to address migrant crisis following failed Brighton Park ...

'Like a gift': Oprah Winfrey says she uses weight-loss medication

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:25:31 GMT

(WJW) – While it’s known in polite company never to ask about someone’s weight, in American culture, we’ve been talking about Oprah Winfrey’s weight for decades.And so has she."It was public sport to make fun of me for 25 years," she told People.In an exclusive interview published Thursday, Winfrey, 69, revealed to People that she uses weight-loss medication as a maintenance tool to stay on top of things, and she says she’s "done" being shamed."Obesity is a disease," she told the outlet. "It’s not about willpower — it's about the brain." ‘Ozempic face’: Doctors explain side effect of weight loss drugs Fans of "The Oprah Winfrey Show" will remember one of her most famous episodes from 1988, during which she wheeled out a red wagon filled with 67 pounds of animal fat — the same amount of weight she had recently lost.In this Tuesday, Nov. 16, 1988 file photo, television talk show host Oprah Winfrey shows off her new figure as she stands in front of 67 pounds of fat inside a toy wagon...

McHenry man, 75, charged and seriously injured after single-vehicle crash in unincorporated Richmond 

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:25:31 GMT

RICHMOND, Ill. — A 75-year-old McHenry man was seriously injured and faces charges after a crash in unincorporated Richmond  on Wednesday afternoon.According to the McHenry County Sheriff's Office, first responders arrived at the scene of a crash involving a single vehicle around 4:43 p.m.A preliminary investigation indicates that a 2013 Kia Sorento, driven by a 75-year-old McHenry man, was traveling westbound near the 7800 block of Tryon Grove Road. The vehicle left the roadway to the south, where it struck a culvert, then the vehicle came to rest on its side on the opposite side of the culvert.The driver, and sole occupant of the vehicle, was flown to Advocate Condell Medical Center in Libertyville with serious injuries.The man was charged with misdemeanor driving under the influence and improper lane usage.The McHenry County Sheriff’s Office Major Traffic Crash Investigation Unit is conducting the ongoing investigation.That was the first of two serious single-vehicle crashes...

Congress approves bill barring any president from unilaterally withdrawing from NATO

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:25:31 GMT

(The Hill) - Congress has approved legislation that would prevent any president from withdrawing the United States from the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) without approval from the Senate or an Act of Congress. The measure, spearheaded by Sens. Tim Kaine (D-Va.) and Marco Rubio (R-Fl.), was included in the annual National Defense Authorization Act, which passed out of the House on Thursday and is expected to be signed by President Biden. The provision underscores Congress’s commitment to the NATO alliance that was a target of former President Trump's ire during his term in office. The alliance has taken on revitalized important under Biden, especially since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in Feb. 2022.“NATO has held strong in response to [Russian President Vladimir] Putin’s war in Ukraine and rising challenges around the world,” Kaine said in a statement, He added the legislation “reaffirms U.S. support for this crucial alliance that is foundational for our n...