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Brussels terror attack suspect killed by police

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 14:59:23 GMT

BRUSSELS — Brussels police on Tuesday morning shot dead a man suspected of killing two Swedish football fans in an Islamist terror attack on Monday night.“The perpetrator of the Brussels terrorist attack was identified and has died,” said Interior Minister Annelies Verlinden. “Our thanks to the intelligence and security services and the public prosecutor’s office for their quick and decisive action last night and this morning.” “We can confirm that he is deceased,” a spokesperson for the Belgian federal prosecutor told POLITICO. More information will be released “within an hour,” he added.Monday night’s attack took place around one and a half kilometers north of the city center’s Grand Place, and not far from the Sainte Catherine area — a popular spot filled with restaurants and bars. It happened shortly before Belgium played Sweden in an international football match, which was abandoned after the slayings. After an overnig...

BC looks to continue winning ways at Georgia Tech

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 14:59:23 GMT

The Boston College Eagles need to pick up where they left off.BC entered the bye week with consecutive victories over Virginia and Army to improve to 3-3 overall and 1-2 in the ACC. Both games were back-and-forth struggles that were closed out by the defense late in the fourth quarter.The Eagles will look to even their record in conference play when they travel to Atlanta to engage the Yellow Jackets of Georgia Tech (3-3, 2-1) at venerable Bobby Dodd Stadium.BC needs three wins in the last six games, five in the ACC and a regional home match against UConn, to attain bowl eligibility for the sixth time in the last seven seasons. After finishing 3-9 last season, playing a game in late December at a neutral site means a lot to the program.“We talked at 1-3 that we have to get back to 3-3 at the bye and that was really important for us as a staff to think about,” said BC head coach Jeff Hafley during his weekly press briefing at the Yawkey center on Monday.“For the players, they can’t t...

Palestinian medics in Gaza struggle to save lives under Israeli siege and bombardment

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 14:59:23 GMT

GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip (AP) — For hours and hours, Moen Abu Aish digs through the rubble of demolished homes to find survivors of Israeli airstrikes, toiling in a vast and desperate search complicated by the shortage of critical supplies and the sheer scope of destruction across the Gaza Strip. Even as rescue worker Abu Aish, 58, and his colleagues struggle to pry lifeless bodies from the concrete and twisted metal where residential towers once stood, the death toll keeps rising. Gaza’s Health Ministry has reported that Israel’s bombardment — launched after Hamas mounted a bloody, unprecedented attack on Israel on Oct. 7 — has killed more than 2,700 Palestinians, many of them women and children. But far more Palestinians have been killed than have been officially reported, with 1,200 people, among them some 500 minors, believed to be trapped under the rubble awaiting rescue, or recovery, health authorities said. They based their estimates on distress calls they received.“...

In the news today: Canadian grocers keep mum on pricing plans and N.B. throne speech

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 14:59:23 GMT

Here is a roundup of stories from The Canadian Press designed tobring you up to speed on what you need to know today…Champagne says he wishes grocers would share plansIndustry Minister François-Philippe Champagne says he wishes Canadian grocers would be more forthcoming with the public about their plans to stabilize prices.Earlier this month, Champagne announced that major Canadian grocers — Loblaw, Metro, Empire, Walmart and Costco — submitted initial plans to the federal government for how they will stabilize prices in the face of high inflation.The Liberal government summoned the heads of the companies to meet in Ottawa last month, demanding that they present such a plan by Thanksgiving or face potential tax measures. At the announcement on Oct. 5, Champagne said that those plans included discounts, price freezes and price-matching campaigns. He didn’t divulge many details at the time, saying he wanted the grocers to compete with one another. But in an interview with ...

Oscar-winner Michelle Yeoh elected to be an International Olympic Committee member

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 14:59:23 GMT

MUMBAI, India (AP) — Oscar-winning actor Michelle Yeoh has been elected as a member of the IOC.The International Olympic Committee on Tuesday voted in eight new members to make a total of 107 drawn from royal families, sports officials, current and former athletes plus leaders from politics and industry.Members’ work at annual meetings includes approving recommended candidates as future Olympic Games hosts. They could be asked in Paris next July to change Olympic rules that would let IOC president Thomas Bach seek a third leadership term in 2025 beyond the current 12-year limit. Yeoh, who has ties to the United Nations representing her home country Malaysia, was elected in a 67-9 vote by her new colleagues. The accolade came in the same year as her Oscar win for best actress in “Everything Everywhere All at Once.”Yeoh also is an international campaigner for road safety in partnership with her husband, Jean Todt, the former head of the Ferrari team in Formula One racing. He was presi...

Orchids, veggies and beer: pot producers pivot in tough market

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 14:59:23 GMT

When Miguel Martin first visited Bevo Agtech Inc.’s Langley, B.C., greenhouse, he saw potential bursting from every corner. Hundreds of trays of tomato seedlings stretched away under the glow of LED lights. Baskets of blossoming flowers hung from the rafters. And the company was convinced it already had its next big product line: orchids.Martin is CEO of Aurora Cannabis Inc. and may have seemed like an unlikely buyer for Bevo, an agriculture stalwart still run by the Dutch family that founded it in 1986. But it was a good match: the Edmonton-based pot giant already had the hulking, temperature-controlled greenhouses Bevo needed to expand, while for Aurora, Bevo’s stability would provide some reprieve from the volatile weed industry.“It’s a company that makes money. It’s a company that’s growing,” Martin saidin a September interview, a year after Aurora bought a 50.1 per cent stake in Bevo for $45 million.“It’s a company that’s not brok...

Tortoise, Frank the Tank, found wandering in a B.C. field of bok choy needs home

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 14:59:23 GMT

VANCOUVER — With a name like Frank the Tank, you might think nothing could stop the 16-kilogram sulcata tortoise, but wandering alone on farmland near Richmond, B.C., certainly slowed him down. Shelley Smith was one of the first to spot Frank moving slowly in a field of bok choy near her house about two weeks ago, just before the Thanksgiving holiday.  Smith said several construction workers nearby pointed to something that looked like a rock. Then the rock moved.“I was like, ‘Oh … It’s a freaking turtle wandering along very slowly,” said Smith. “I am like, ‘I can’t leave you here.’”One of the construction workers helped her pick up the tortoise and it was placed in a plastic kiddie pool that she originally bought for her dog.She then reached out to the SPCA for help. “We’re all petting him, and his feet were massive. They look like elephant feet,” she said, adding that it was an awesome experience to have a close encounter with a tortoise. When the SPCA late...

Judge to deem if man with history of mental illness responsible in death of parents

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 14:59:23 GMT

WINNIPEG — A judge is expected to decide whether a Winnipeg man should be deemed not criminally responsible for his role in the killings of his parents and stabbing a colleague. Manitoba Court of King’s Bench Justice Kenneth Champagne heard on Monday that Trevor Farley was experiencing psychosis and auditory delusions the day he stabbed his 73-year-old parents to death and stabbed a nursing supervisor more than a dozen times nearly two years ago. Farley’s lawyer says Farley acknowledges he committed the attacks but he should be found not criminally responsible due to mental illness. Farley pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder in his mother’s death, second-degree murder in his father’s death and attempted murder in the stabbing of Candace Szkwarek. A mental health assessment was ordered shortly after police arrested Farley, and lawyers for the Crown accepted doctors’ conclusion that Farley did not understand what he was doing at the time of the atta...

‘Freedom Convoy’ organizers’ trial to hear testimony from final Ottawa resident

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 14:59:23 GMT

OTTAWA — The trial for two “Freedom Convoy” organizers is set to wrap up hearing testimony from downtown Ottawa residents today.Paul Jorgenson began his evidence Monday in the criminal trial of Tamara Lich and Chris Barber, who face charges related to their role in organizing the weeks-long protest against COVID-19 public health restrictions.He described his desperation to leave downtown Ottawa during the protest, even though his car was blocked in by trucks and other vehicles.So far, all five resident witnesses have described a scene of overwhelming noise from blaring truck horns and engines, and the persistent smell of diesel fumes during the protest. The Crown is expected to wrap up its questions for Jorgenson before he is cross-examined by the defence.As of Monday evening, Crown prosecutors were still weighing whether to call another witness who worked downtown last winter. This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 17, 2023.The Canadian Press

Champagne says he wishes grocers were more ‘forthcoming’ on plans to stabilize prices

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 14:59:23 GMT

OTTAWA — Industry Minister François-Philippe Champagne says he wishes Canadian grocers would be more forthcoming with the public about their plans to stabilize prices.Earlier this month, Champagne announced that major Canadian grocers — Loblaw, Metro, Empire, Walmart and Costco — submitted initial plans to the federal government for how they will stabilize prices in the face of high inflation.The Liberal government summoned the heads of the companies to meet in Ottawa last month, demanding that they present such a plan by Thanksgiving or face potential tax measures. At the announcement on Oct. 5, Champagne said that those plans included discounts, price freezes and price-matching campaigns. He didn’t divulge many details at the time, saying he wanted the grocers to compete with one another. But in an interview with The Canadian Press on Monday,  Champagne said he wishes the grocers were willing to be more open. “I wish they would be more forthcoming,” Champagne sai...