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‘Everything indicates’ Chinese ship damaged Baltic pipeline on purpose, Finland says

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:50:42 GMT

BRUSSELS — As the investigation into damage to Baltic Sea critical infrastructure continues, Finland’s Minister of European Affairs Anders Adlercreutz said it’s hard to believe sabotage to the undersea gas pipeline was accidental — or that it happened without Beijing’s knowledge.“I’m not the sea captain. But I would think that you would notice that you’re dragging an anchor behind you for hundreds of kilometers,” Adlercreutz said in an interview Thursday in Brussels. “I think everything indicates that it was intentional. But of course, so far, nobody has admitted to it.”Finland and Estonia have been investigating the rupture of the Balticconnector, a 77-kilometer-long gas pipeline that connects the two NATO members beneath the Baltic Sea. The pipeline was damaged around October 7-8, along with two telecoms cables connecting Estonia to Finland and Sweden.An investigation by Finnish authorities identified as the main suspect Chinese container ship Newnew Polar B...

A balanced transition

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:50:42 GMT

This content focuses on Equinor’s role in the EU energy transition, please visit their pages to learn more about their wider European and global operations.

Report: Red Sox no longer pursuing top free agent Shohei Ohtani

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:50:42 GMT

The possibility of the Red Sox landing two-way superstar Shohei Ohtani always felt like a reach, but now the prospect is looking even more unlikely.According to a report by ESPN insider Jeff Passan, the Red Sox have backed off their pursuit of Ohtani and shifted their focus to other players.“The Texas Rangers, Boston Red Sox and New York Mets, who were among the initial group of suitors, have turned their attention to other players, sources said,” Passan wrote. “Among those confirmed by sources to be still in the bidding: the Los Angeles Dodgers, Chicago Cubs, Toronto Blue Jays and Angels.”Passan later wrote that the Red Sox are still in the mix for right-hander Yoshinobu Yamamoto, the 25-year-old Japanese ace who is expected to land a deal worth well over $200 million.Ohtani, who won his second American League MVP award this season, is expected to land the largest free agent contract in North American sports history. Even after undergoing elbow surgery that will keep hi...

Editorial: Northwestern’s David Braun deserved to be Big Ten Coach of the Year

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:50:42 GMT

Amid the flameout of the Chicago White Sox, the Bulls’ horrific start, the Bears’ continuing allergy to winning and the Blackhawks suffering yet another scandal involving off-ice conduct, there’s been one cheering story to remember.That’s David Braun, who began this year as Pat Fitzgerald’s new defensive coordinator at Northwestern University, was tapped on an interim basis to coach the team after Fitzgerald’s firing, and led the Wildcats to a wildly improbable 7-5 record and a bowl berth.Braun deservedly had the interim tag removed two weeks ago, and days ago was honored as Big Ten Coach of the Year.Have yourself a year, David Braun.Braun’s accomplishment goes far beyond his team’s record. There were questions about whether Northwestern’s football program ought even to continue following the disturbing disclosures of hazing that destroyed Fitzgerald’s coaching career.Simply focusing the team on the task of competing in foo...

Retired Justice Sandra Day O’Connor, the first woman on the Supreme Court, has died at age 93

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:50:42 GMT

By MARK SHERMAN (Associated Press)WASHINGTON (AP) — Retired Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor, an unwavering voice of moderate conservatism and the first woman to serve on the nation’s highest court, died Friday. She was 93.O’Connor died in Phoenix, of complications related to advanced dementia and a respiratory illness, the Supreme Court said in a news release. Chief Justice John Roberts mourned her death. “A daughter of the American Southwest, Sandra Day O’Connor blazed an historic trail as our Nation’s first female Justice,” Roberts said in statement issued by the court. “She met that challenge with undaunted determination, indisputable ability, and engaging candor.”In 2018, she announced that she had been diagnosed with “the beginning stages of dementia, probably Alzheimer’s disease.” Her husband, John O’Connor, died of complications of Alzheimer’s in 2009.O’Connor’s nom...

Did you feel it? Series of earthquakes recorded near San Diego County

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:50:42 GMT

SAN DIEGO -- A series of earthquakes shook an area near San Diego County Thursday night, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.The first, a 3.3 magnitude, was recorded at 11:35 p.m. east of Ocotillo, California in in Imperial County. The quake, about 18-miles from El Centro, occurred at a depth of about 5.5 miles, sending shockwaves that were felt as far west as Lakeside. Wrong-way driver collision prompts closure of southbound I-5 in North County Another quake shortly followed at 11:43 p.m., reaching a 4.8 magnitude and depth of almost 6 miles east of Ocotillo. The USGS intensity map shows this one was felt much further than the first. Shockwaves were reported as far west as the San Diego coast, and as far north as Victorville in San Bernardino County.The shaking continued right after midnight with a 2.6 quake rattling the Ocotillo area, once again. This lesser incident was recorded with a depth of about 1.5 miles, with no reports of aftershocks felt, according to USG...

Sentencing hearing for Nathaniel Veltman scheduled for January

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:50:42 GMT

A sentencing hearing for a man who killed four members of a Muslim family in London, Ont. and injured another has been set for January.Prosecutors and defence lawyers are scheduled to make their submissions on sentencing in the case of Nathaniel Veltman on Jan. 4 and 5.Veltman, 22, was found guilty last month of four counts of first-degree murder and one count of attempted murder for hitting the Afzaal family with his truck while they were out for a walk on June 6, 2021. Related: Nathaniel Veltman guilty on all counts in London, Ont., attack ‘It very much can set a precedent’: Criminal attorney breaks down London attack trial A guilty verdict, and a community can begin to heal Accused in London, Ont., attack says he felt ‘urge’ to hit Muslim family members The case, which the jury heard over more than two months, was the first where Canada’s terrorism laws were put before a jury in a first-de...

Evidence admissible in drug case despite Charter concerns, Supreme Court rules

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:50:42 GMT

OTTAWA — The Supreme Court of Canada has upheld a man’s drug-related conviction, saying evidence in his case is admissible despite concerns about violation of his Charter rights.In February 2017 near Banff, Alta., a police officer pulled over George Zacharias’s truck because the windows were illegally tinted and a light wasn’t working.The officer, upon suspecting illicit drug activity, called in backup support and a sniffer dog.A search of the truck turned up a large amount of cannabis and Zacharias was arrested for possession for the purpose of trafficking.Zacharias alleged that police had breached his Charter rights to be protected from unreasonable search and seizure and arbitrary detention.But the trial judge admitted the evidence on grounds that excluding it would bring the administration of justice into disrepute.This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 1, 2023.The Canadian Press

A look back at 50 years of Kiss-tory as the legendary band prepares to take its final bow

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:50:42 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — Fifty years ago, four young New Yorkers dragged their guitars, amps and drums to a loft on 23rd Street in New York, dreaming of becoming the biggest band in the world.This weekend, Kiss, the band started by those four — albeit with two different members currently in the fold — will say its goodbyes about 10 blocks north of that loft. Kiss will play Madison Square Garden, having become if not THE biggest band in the world, certainly one of the biggest, one that’s redefined expectations for the live concert experience.Here is a look back at major events in Kiss’ history, taken from Associated Press interviews with Kiss members, quotes they gave to other media and material from band members’ autobiographies:1973: Gene Simmons, who worked briefly as a teacher and loved horror films and comic books, and cabbie Paul Stanley, who once dropped passengers off at Madison Square Garden to see Elvis Presley and vowed someday he’d be on that same stage, ex...

Pakistan’s supreme court hears petition on forceful deportation of Afghans born in the country

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:50:42 GMT

ISLAMABAD (AP) — Pakistan’s top court opened a hearing Friday on a petition by human rights activists seeking to halt the forceful deportation of Afghans who were born in Pakistan and those who would be at risk if they were returned to Afghanistan. The deportations are part of a nationwide crackdown by the government in Islamabad that started last month on Afghans who are in Pakistan without papers or proper documentation. Pakistan claims the campaign does not target Afghans specifically, though they make up most of the foreigners in the country. Pakistan has long hosted about 1.7 million Afghans, most of whom fled during the 1979-1989 Soviet occupation. In addition, more than half a million people fled Afghanistan when the Taliban seized power in August 2021, in the final weeks of U.S. and NATO pullout. Since Islamabad launched the crackdown in October, giving Afghans until the end of the month to go back or face arrest, hundreds of thousands have returned home, many in Pakistan-or...