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Ukraine bans its athletes from tournaments where they may face Russians, Belarusians

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:05:29 GMT

KYIV — The Ukrainian Ministry of Youth and Sports issued a ban on national-level athletes entering Olympic and non-Olympic international sports competitions where they might face competitors from Russia or Belarus. The ministry also urged Ukrainian sports federations to monitor the participation of both Russians and Belarusians in upcoming competitions, and withdraw their athletes if they are taking part. Many Russian athletes are serving in the Russian army and have supported the invasion of Ukraine.“We lost diplomatically when the Ukrainian National Olympic Committee and Ministry of Sports failed to persuade IOC [the International Olympic Committee] to ban Russians. Now our athletes have become hostages of this situation,” said Zhan Beleniuk, a Ukrainian lawmaker and 2020 Olympic champion in Greco-Roman wrestling. He had already started preparing for the fall qualification matches to get a license for the 2024 Paris Olympics. But now his participation, as ...

World needs Biden ‘in time of great danger,’ Irish foreign minister says

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:05:29 GMT

DUBLIN – Joe Biden hasn’t yet officially announced whether he’ll run for U.S. president again – but the government of Ireland sees him as still the right man for the job.Foreign Minister Micheál Martin, who’s been by Biden’s side during much of the president’s three-day tour of the Republic of Ireland, says he’s convinced that what the world needs “at a time of great danger” is four more years of Biden.When asked whether he thought the 80-year-old Biden could remain sufficiently fit for a second term, Martin – a youthful 62 himself – said he’d seen enough of Biden’s hands-on energy to conclude that politics is the very thing that sustains him.“Certainly he draws energy from politics, he draws energy from people, and he’s a natural politician. There’s no waning of the appetite,” Martin said, referring in particular to their Wednesday tour of County Louth north of Dublin, when Biden pressed the flesh for hours in the border town of Dundalk and clambered around Carlingford Castle.RTÉ r...

Still Boston Strong: Donors, health care workers remember role of donated blood in saving lives after marathon bombing

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:05:29 GMT

Blood donations were crucial in saving the lives of victims injured in the Boston Marathon bombing 10 years ago. A decade later, the spirit of generosity lives on as many in Boston remember the aftermath of the attack and continue efforts to help others. Mass General Blood Donor Services Manager Kim Cronin told 7NEWS 38 patients were brought to MGH “almost immediately” following the bombing. Of those patients, eight were considered critical, according to Cronin.“The key there was the blood needed to be at the emergency room by the time that they got there,” Cronin said.Minutes mattered in the race to save lives. But MGH was prepared. A South Boston law firm, Morrison Mahoney, hosted a blood drive just two weeks before the attack. All of the donated blood collected at that drive was processed and ready on April 15, 2013, when the bombs went off.  “We knew that this blood drive was the one that really had the blood already tested, ty...

Mother of 6-year-old who shot teacher turns herself in on child neglect charge, her attorney says

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:05:29 GMT

(CNN) — The mother of a 6-year-old student who shot his first-grade teacher in a classroom in Newport News, Virginia, earlier this year turned herself in Thursday on charges of child neglect and recklessly leaving a firearm so as to endanger a child, her attorney said.Deja Taylor surrendered to the Newport News Sheriff’s Office and was later released on $5,000 bond, attorney James Ellenson told CNN.The indictments against Taylor, 26, were announced Monday in a press release from the office of the Commonwealth’s Attorney.Ellenson said in a statement Tuesday his client has no criminal record, has cooperated since the shooting occurred and planned to turn herself in before the end of the week.“As always, first and foremost is the continued health and wellbeing of all persons involved in the incident at Richneck Elementary School, to include both the teacher and Deja’s son,” the statement said.The charges were handed down three months after ...

Boeing discovers new issue with 737 Max jets but says they can continue flying

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:05:29 GMT

(CNN) — Boeing said it has discovered a manufacturing issue with some 737 Max aircraft, although it insisted the problem is not “an immediate safety of flight issue.”A supplier used a “non-standard manufacturing process” during the installation of two fittings in the rear fuselage, Boeing said in a statement to CNN.The company said Max jets can continue flying while inspections are underway and the Federal Aviation Administration said it “validated” that conclusion. It already subjects new 737 Max aircraft to greater scrutiny than it does other newly manufactured planes prior to delivery following two fatal 737 Max crashes.Boeing declined to say how many 737 Max planes are affected, beyond calling it a “significant number.” Shares are down nearly 6% in premarket trading.United Airlines said it doesn’t expect “any significant impact on our capacity plans for this summer or the rest of the year.” Southwest Ai...

Drug manufacturer asks Supreme Court to intervene in abortion drug dispute

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:05:29 GMT

(CNN) — The manufacturer of a key medication abortion drug asked the Supreme Court on Friday to intervene in an emergency dispute over a Texas judge’s medication abortion drug ruling, requesting that the court step in now rather than wait for an appeal of the ruling to formally play out.The case is the most important abortion-related dispute to reach the high court since the justices overturned Roe v. Wade last term. It centers on the scope of the US Food and Drug Administration’s authority to regulate a drug that is used in the majority of abortions today in states that still allow the procedure.The Department of Justice is also expected to ask the justices to step in on an emergency basis before Friday night at midnight.The clock is ticking. If the Supreme Court does not step in, the district court’s ruling, as amended by a subsequent appeals court opinion, will go into effect Friday night at midnight, and access to the drug mifepristone...

How did Jack Teixeira earn Top Secret security clearance?

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:05:29 GMT

Jack Teixeira, the Dighton 21-year-old Guardsman accused of leaking Top Secret government documents on the war in Ukraine, was granted that ultra-sensitive clearance in 2021, court documents show.An FBI affidavit in his case states that Teixeira “holds a Top Secret security clearance, which was granted in 2021.” The FBI agent adds that “based on (his) training and experience, I know that to acquire his security clearance, TEIXEIRA would have signed a lifetime binding non-disclosure agreement in which he would have had to acknowledge that the unauthorized disclosure of protected information could result in criminal charges.”

Charges against Massachusetts Guardsman just posted as he’s held in Top Secret leak case

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:05:29 GMT

Jack Teixeira, the 21-year-old Massachusetts Air National Guardsman accused of leaking Top Secret government documents, is being held without bail until at least next week.The Dighton man made a short appearance in U.S. District Court in Boston this morning where the case against him has just been posted.Those documents state: “Many of the documents depicted in these images bear classificationmarkings, including ‘TOP SECRET’ markings…“Certain of the images appear to depict Government Information that was used to inform senior military and civilian government officials during briefings at the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia. …“(I)n or around January 2023, the Subject Username began posting photographs of documents on Server 1 that contained what appeared to be classification markings on official U.S. Government documents….”U.S. District Court Magistrate Judge David Hennessy scheduled a full detention hearing for Wednesday at an un...

European spacecraft on way to Jupiter and its icy moons

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:05:29 GMT

A European spacecraft rocketed away Friday on a decadelong quest to explore Jupiter and three of its icy moons that could have buried oceans.The journey began with a perfect morning liftoff by Europe’s Ariane rocket from French Guiana on the coast of South America. But there were some tense minutes later as controllers awaited signals from the spacecraft.When contact finally was confirmed close to an hour into the flight, Mission Control in Germany declared “The spacecraft is alive!”“It’s a moment of pride for Europe,” noted Josef Aschbacher, the space agency’s director general. “I’m just relieved and just so happy.”It will take the robotic explorer, dubbed Juice, eight years to reach Jupiter, where it will scope out not only the solar system’s biggest planet but also Europa, Callisto and Ganymede. The three ice-encrusted moons are believed to harbor underground oceans, where sea life could exist.Then in perhaps the most impressive feat of all, Juice will attempt t...

Weather curveball: Snow expected in southern Ontario early next week as temperatures plunge

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:05:29 GMT

Mother Nature gave southern Ontario an incredible tease of the summer as Toronto broke a nearly 50-year weather record due to soaring temperatures and sunny skies. That’s all about to change as we head into the weekend.Thanks to a Colorado Low, regions north of Toronto — including Sault Ste. Marie, Sudbury, Huntsville and Barrie — could wake up to snowy conditions on Tuesday, with temperatures forecasted to plummet through the weekend — temperatures more typical of late March and early April.Snowfall amounts will be limited to flurries across the GTA and much of southern Ontario, but Lake Huron and parts of cottage country could have up to 5 cm of snow through Monday.Toronto is expected to evade the snow and will likely get a messy mix of rain and flurries to start the week, with an early forecasted high of 8 C and a similar daytime high on Tuesday — a far cry from what was felt this week.There could be a rain shower-flurries mix in Toronto on Monday ni...