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The EU has revealed its blueprint to curb migration

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 21:42:54 GMT

BRUSSELS — Cash is king in the EU’s plan to stop migrants from coming to Europe.On Sunday, the EU finalized a deal with Tunisia — a common departure point for people seeking asylum in Europe — that essentially offers the country millions in exchange for help blocking the boats that have been carrying a growing number of people to Europe. The key: the deal goes well beyond migration to also touch on areas like trade, investment and green energy. The pact is a preview of things to come. Now that the EU has this framework in place, Brussels is eager to strike similar deals with other Northern African countries. Already, negotiators are eyeing Egypt and Morocco as potential next targets, according to an EU official who spoke anonymously to discuss the plans.“A blueprint for similar partnerships,” European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen crowed recently.“A model to build new relations with neighbors from North Africa,” Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni...

Russia’s war in Ukraine gatecrashes EU-Latin America reunion

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 21:42:54 GMT

A diplomatic row between EU and Latin American countries over how — or even whether — to mention the war in Ukraine risks turning what was meant to be the celebration of a renewed partnership into a diplomatic failure. The first day of a summit between the EU and the Community of the Latin American & the Caribbean States (CELAC) was all about affirming strengthened intercontinental ties. But the lofty talk quickly fell flat as EU negotiators tried to convince Latin American countries to condemn Russia over its war in Ukraine. Nicaragua and Cuba vehemently opposed the proposed language on Ukraine, according to three EU officials — with one alleging that these two countries had received calls from Moscow advising them to do so.The row in Brussels came just as Russia refused Monday to extend a U.N.-brokered deal that had allowed Ukraine to export its grain surplus through the Black Sea. Both were stark reminders of how Russia’s hybrid geopolitics seeks to drive a we...

Man pleads not guilty to Walmart parking lot beating death in New Hampshire

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 21:42:54 GMT

SOMERSWORTH, N.H. (AP) — A man pleaded not guilty Monday to second-degree murder in the beating death of a 79-year-old man in the parking lot of a Walmart in southeastern New Hampshire.Brian Roberge, 52, of Somersworth, was being held without bail following his hearing.Somersworth police said they arrested Roberge after responding to a call Friday about one man assaulting another. When they arrived at the Walmart, they found Jan VanTassel, of Center Ossipee, unresponsive with visible head and facial injuries. First responders determined he was dead.An autopsy determined VanTassel’s cause of death was due to compressional asphyxia and that his manner of death was homicide.That finding “is consistent with eyewitness accounts that Mr. Roberge was straddling Mr. VanTassel’s chest for several minutes while hitting him in the head and face,” a news release from the attorney general’s office said.Roberge appeared at Monday’s arraignment via video, asking f...

Elizabeth Warren asks SEC to investigate Tesla

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 21:42:54 GMT

New York (CNN) — Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren asked the SEC to investigate Tesla and its board of directors to determine whether they violated securities laws after CEO Elon Musk took over Twitter last year.In a nine-page letter to the Securities and Exchange Commission Monday, the Massachusetts senator said Elon Musk’s long list of responsibilities, from owning Twitter to remaining Tesla’s CEO, “have raised concerns about conflicts of interest, misappropriation of corporate assets, and other negative impacts to Tesla shareholders.” Warren added that the electric car company’s board failed to ensure it has acted in shareholders’ best interests.Chief among Warren’s concerns in the letter: funneling Tesla (TSLA) resources into Musk’s Twitter takeover, conflicts of interest regarding advertising from other car companies, and possible labor law violations when transitioning some Tesla (TSLA) employees to Twitter.Warren is asking SEC ch...

Waltham police release new info on machete assault that left victim with head wound, 3 suspects arrested

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 21:42:54 GMT

Police in Waltham say it was a “neighbor dispute” that led to an attack involving a machete last week, resulting in one person receiving a wound to the head, a pregnant victim being assaulted, and three arrests.In an update, authorities described how officers were called to the area of 34 Hammond Street on Friday, July 14, for a report of a fight involving a machete. First responders arrived to find at least one person there with a “deep head laceration,” according to the police department, which officials said was non-life-threatening.Waltham PD officials said the victim was the only person struck by a machete, while two other individuals were assaulted while trying to stop the attack.The police department said two males were arrested at the scene, while a third male was arrested two days later, on Sunday morning.The arrested inviduals included:Osman Aguilar Borrayo, 27, of Waltham, who was charged with “Mayhem, Armed Assault w/Intent to Murder, Assaul...

Shark spotted jumping out of the water in Cape Cod Bay to catch striped bass on fishing line

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 21:42:54 GMT

A great white shark was recently spotted jumping out of the water to catch a striped bass on a fishing line in Cape Cod Bay.Shark sightings along the Massachusetts coast have been rising in the last few weeks, as more of the apex predators move north to the region for the summer and fall. Some Cape beaches were closed to swimming last week due to several shark sightings.While most of the shark reports show the animal lurking below the water’s surface, a recent great white sighting was a shark leaping into the air.“White shark jumped and caught our striped bass on the line!” a witness on the fishing boat posted on the Atlantic White Shark Conservancy’s Sharktivity app, along with a photo of the mid-air shark.The shark sighting was reported off of Eastham in Cape Cod Bay on Friday evening.Related ArticlesLocal News | Cape Cod beaches close to swimming after several shark sightings: ‘Lots of activity today’ Local News | A b...

Wildfire smoke from Canada again impacts Massachusetts, sparks ‘air quality alert’

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 21:42:54 GMT

That pesky smoke from the raging Canadian wildfires is yet again impacting the region, sparking an “air quality alert” for parts of the Bay State.The smoke from the out-of-control wildfires in Canada has wreaked havoc on the U.S. for several weeks now, since the beginning of June. Depending on how the wind blows, the smoke and hazy skies will likely come back to the region at various points over the next few months.One of those unfortunate times is this week, as the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection on Monday issued an air quality alert for five counties in central and western Massachusetts.Those counties under the air quality alert for elevated fine particle pollution (PM2.5) on Monday were: Worcester, Berkshire, Franklin, Hampshire, and Hampden counties.“Air quality is expected to be unhealthy for sensitive groups,” the state Department of Environmental Protection said in a statement. “Sensitive groups include people with heart or l...

How’s the market? How to hire for home repairs

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 21:42:54 GMT

Are you considering a home remodel or building a new house? Here are some questions you should ask before you choose a contractor or other licensed professional.How long have you been in business?In a community as small as ours, word gets around if you don’t know what you’re doing. In big metropolitan areas, there’s an endless supply of people who need work done and have no idea whether a contractor is any good, but in the Ukiah Valley it’s hard to stay in business for very long doing shoddy or unscrupulous work.Are you licensed and insured?A license doesn’t guarantee quality work, but it does increase the chances that your contractor will have the skills to do the job. Be sure your contractor is licensed to do the specific work you need — and that he or she carries both liability and workers’ compensation insurance.Hiring a licensed and insured professional not only increases the likelihood of quality, but it may also provide financial security if something goes wrong.Years ago, a ...

Deaths of four Oregon women over three months are linked, authorities say

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 21:42:54 GMT

SALEM, Ore. (AP) — The deaths of four women whose bodies were found over the course of three months in or near Portland, Oregon, are linked, and at least one person of interest has been identified, authorities said Monday.The Multnomah County District Attorney’s office in Portland says no charges have been filed against anyone but that the community is not currently in any danger. Local media reported that a man is in custody.The women’s bodies were found in Portland and rural areas starting in February, with the latest one found in May. One body was found about 45 miles (72 kilometers) southwest of Portland, near a creek in Polk County. Authorities said the state medical examiner has not determined the cause or manner of death for any of the women. They were all from the Portland area.Officials did not use the word “serial killer” in announcing the connection between the deaths. “Investigators and prosecutors from multiple law enforcement agencies have been working collaboratively ...

Floods wash away children, scorching heat envelopes the West as wildfire smoke overtakes northern US

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 21:42:54 GMT

WASHINGTON CROSSING, Pa. (AP) — Emergency crews in suburban Philadelphia intensified their search Monday for a missing 9-month-old boy and his 2-year-old sister who were swept away in a family car when torrential rains flooded a roadway. While the East Coast grappled with the aftermath of downpours that closed roads and rendered the water supply undrinkable in places, the West and other parts of the country contended with sizzling temperatures and unsafe air quality attributed to Canadian wildfires.In eastern Pennsylvania, authorities described Monday’s search for missing Matilda Sheils, 2, and her 9-month-old brother Conrad Sheils as a “massive undertaking” including 100 search crew members and numerous drones dispatched along a creek that drains into the Delaware River. The children are members of a Charleston, South Carolina, family that was visiting relatives and friends when they got caught in a flash flood Saturday. “As they tried to escape the fierce floodwaters, dad to...