St. Louis police protesters begin picking up checks in $4.9 million settlement

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 16:09:23 GMT

St. Louis police protesters begin picking up checks in $4.9 million settlement ST. LOUIS (AP) — Some of the people who were arrested during a 2017 protest over the acquittal of a white police officer in the shooting death of Anthony Lamar Smith have started receiving their share of a $4.9 million settlement the city agreed to this year.The first checks were distributed Friday to some of the 84 people covered by the settlement. Their lawsuit had claimed the protesters’ rights were violated when they were caught in a police “kettle” as officers surrounded and arrested everyone in the area. Three people who filed individual lawsuits also settled for $85,000 each. The city denied wrongdoing as part of the settlement, which promises payouts between $28,000 and more than $150,000. Dekita Roberts told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch that she initially thought it might be a scam when she first got the call about the settlement.“It was just a shock and a surprise,” said Roberts, adding that she wants to invest some of the money and try to set some aside for her children.An...

Saudi Arabia, Bahrain urge citizens to leave Lebanon after Palestinian refugee camp clashes

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 16:09:23 GMT

Saudi Arabia, Bahrain urge citizens to leave Lebanon after Palestinian refugee camp clashes BEIRUT (AP) — Bahrain called on its citizens Saturday to leave Lebanon “for their own safety” hours after Saudi Arabia did the same without giving a reason.The decision by the two Gulf nations came after days of fighting in the largest Palestinian refugee camp in Lebanon between members of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas’ Fatah group and militants of Islamic groups.The four days of fighting in Ein el-Hilweh camp near the southern port city of Sidon has left 13 people dead and dozens wounded.Bahrain’s Foreign Ministry said Bahrainis should abide by the government’s previous decisions to avoid travel to Lebanon.The Saudi embassy in Beirut posted a statement late Friday night on X, formerly known as Twitter, calling on its citizens to avoid going to areas where there are “armed conflicts” and also to leave Lebanon quickly. The Associated Press

McConnell is warmly embraced by Kentucky Republicans amid questions about his health

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 16:09:23 GMT

McConnell is warmly embraced by Kentucky Republicans amid questions about his health MAYFIELD, Ky. (AP) — U.S. Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell received a rousing welcome from the party faithful Saturday at a high-profile home-state political gathering amid renewed scrutiny of his health after the 81-year-old lawmaker froze up midsentence during a recent Capitol Hill news conference. “This is my 28th Fancy Farm, and I want to assure you it’s not my last,” McConnell said at the top of his breakfast speech before the annual picnic that is the traditional jumping off point for the fall campaign season. It was his only reference, however vague, to his health.McConnell, who is widely regarded as the main architect of the GOP’s rise to power in Kentucky, arrived to a prolonged standing ovation and promoted the candidacy of a protege running for governor this year.McConnell has been a fixture on the stage at Fancy Farm, where he long has relished jousting with Democrats. His health has drawn increased attention since he briefly left his own news conference in Washi...

New York City high school student charged with hate-motived murder in killing of gay dancer

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 16:09:23 GMT

New York City high school student charged with hate-motived murder in killing of gay dancer NEW YORK (AP) — Police have arrested a 17-year-old high school student on a hate-motived murder charge in the fatal stabbing of a professional dancer during an altercation between two groups of friends at a New York City gas station last weekend.Police took the teenager into custody Friday in connection with the killing of the 28-year-old O’Shae Sibley, who was gay. Authorities declined to release the defendant’s name.“Parents lost a child, a child, to something that was clearly a hate crime,” Mayor Eric Adams, a former police captain, said Saturday during a news conference outside the Brooklyn gas station where Sibley was killed July 29.The stabbing occurred after the two groups got into a confrontation at one of the gas pumps, where Sibley was dancing with his friends to a Beyoncé song. Authorities said Sibley’s group was being taunted by the other group before the confrontation ended in violence.Beyoncé would later pay tribute to Sibley on her website.Security camera ...

Palestinian shooting attack in downtown Tel Aviv kills Israeli security guard

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 16:09:23 GMT

Palestinian shooting attack in downtown Tel Aviv kills Israeli security guard JERUSALEM (AP) — A Palestinian gunman on Saturday opened fire in central Tel Aviv, killing an Israeli security guard before he was shot and killed by police, authorities said.The attack came a day after a settler rampage in the occupied West Bank killed one Palestinian, deepening the spiral of violence that has gripped the region for the past year and a half.Late Saturday, officials from Ichilov Hospital identified the Tel Aviv security guard who was killed as 42-year-old Chen Amir. Police identified the gunman as 27-year-old Kamel Abu Bakr, from a village near the flashpoint city of Jenin in the northern West Bank.Jenin’s refugee camp last month was the site of the largest Israeli offensive in the West Bank in nearly two decades. Twelve Palestinians, including at least eight militants, and one Israeli soldier, were killed in the fighting, which forced thousands to flee their homes and left large swaths of the camp in ruins. lsraeli police said that Amir and another officer no...

Tugboat sinks in Egypt’s Suez Canal after colliding with tanker

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 16:09:23 GMT

Tugboat sinks in Egypt’s Suez Canal after colliding with tanker CAIRO (AP) — A tugboat sank Saturday in Egypt’s Suez Canal after it collided with a Hong Kong-flagged tanker, the waterway’s authorities said.In a statement, the Suez Canal Authority, which oversees the operation of the key water passage, said its teams were working to recover the tugboat after it launched an operation to save the seven-person crew. It did not mention whether the movement of other ships transporting through the canal had been affected.The canal, which connects the Mediterranean and Red Seas, sees periodic groundings of mega-large transport ships that go through it, many of them traveling between China and Europe and the Western Hemisphere. Tugboats help guide ships passing through.The tanker involved in Saturday’s collision, the authority said, was the Hong Kong-flagged tanker Chinagas Legend, which it said was now waiting in Port Said.In March 2021 a skyscraper-sized container ship, the Panama-flagged Ever Given, ran aground in a single-lane stretch of ...

Independent Investigations Office probe Vancouver Police shooting that left man dead

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 16:09:23 GMT

Independent Investigations Office probe Vancouver Police shooting that left man dead Vancouver Police say an 18-year-old man is dead after being shot by police in an East Vancouver park early Saturday morning. The department issued a statement saying officers were called to Clinton Park around 2:15 a.m. after someone reported gun shots near the park’s playground.Police say officers showed up and confronted a man with a gun, who was shot by police and later died after being taken to a hospital. They say no officers were hurt during the incident and they were unable to find any victims tied to the 911 call that brought them to the park. Police say the Independent Investigations Office of BC, the province’s civilian oversight body that probes police-involved deaths, is now investigating the incident. A statement from the office says investigators are now looking into the shooting to determine what role Vancouver Police played in the man’s death. This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 5, 2023. The Canadian Press

Cavs player Ricky Rubio pauses career for mental health

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 16:09:23 GMT

Cavs player Ricky Rubio pauses career for mental health CLEVELAND (WJW) – Ricky Rubio, a 12-year veteran of the NBA and a member of the Spanish National Team, announced Saturday that he was putting his career on hold indefinitely to focus on mental health.Rubio, who currently plays for the Cleveland Cavaliers, asked for support in a statement issued through the Spanish Basketball Federation (FEB).He did not disclose any details that led to the decision."I decided to stop my professional activity to take care of my mental health," Rubio said. "I want to thank all the support I have received from the FEB to understand my decision. Today #family makes more sense than ever. Thank you. I would ask that my privacy be respected so that I can face these moments and be able to give more information when the time is right.”NEW YORK, NEW YORK - APRIL 23: Ricky Rubio #13 of the Cleveland Cavaliers reacts during Game Four of the Eastern Conference First Round Playoffs against the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden on April 23, 20...

Jamie Foxx apologizes for apparent antisemitic Instagram post; Jennifer Aniston apologizes for liking it

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 16:09:23 GMT

Jamie Foxx apologizes for apparent antisemitic Instagram post; Jennifer Aniston apologizes for liking it (KTLA) — Jamie Foxx has apologized for a cryptic Instagram post referring to “Jesus” and “fake friends” that some found to be antisemitic. The actor, who recently recovered from a health scare, posted a black screen on his Instagram feed with the words “They killed this dude name [sic] Jesus...what do you think they’ll do to you???!” with the hashtags #fakefriends and #fakelove.  RECALL: Baby monitors sold at Walmart, Toys ‘R’ Us pose fire risk In Foxx’s apology post on Saturday morning, he clarified that he was “betrayed by a fake friend” and that the fake friend was the “they” he was referring to in the post. “I only have love and in my heart for everyone,” Foxx said on Instagram. “I love and support the Jewish community...My deepest apologies to anyone who was offended.” Actor Jennifer Aniston received some backlash for liking the post. She also took to Instagram to clarify that she “did not ‘like’ this post on purpose or by accident” and that she doesn’t “support any...

Why homes often feel warmer than the thermostat suggests – and what to do about it

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 16:09:23 GMT

Why homes often feel warmer than the thermostat suggests – and what to do about it (The Conversation) - Picture two homes on the same street: one constructed in the 1950s and the other in the 1990s. There are no trees or other shade. The air conditioning units are identical, recently replaced, and operating perfectly. Identical thermostats are set at 82 degrees Fahrenheit (27.8 Celsius).When it’s 110 F (43.3 C) outside, the 1950s house will likely feel at least 10 F (5.6 C) warmer inside, even with the same air temperature.Why?The answer has to do with radiant heat. Radiant heat is what keeps you toasty warm at a campfire on a cold winter night. The fire doesn’t warm the air much; rather, like the Sun, most of the fire’s heat moves through invisible waves directly from the campfire to your body.In the radiant heat of the Arizona sun, the surface temperature of the uninsulated post-and-beam ceilings in my house, one of 41,000 built in Tucson during the post-World War II era, can reach over 100 F (37.8 C). The single-glazed steel windows register 122 F (50...