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Australian prime minister calls for cooperation ahead of meeting with China’s Xi

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:43:34 GMT

BEIJING (AP) — Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese struck an optimistic tone ahead of his meeting with Chinese leader Xi Jinping on Monday, calling for cooperation while emphasizing that the two countries will continue to have differences.Albanese is the first Australian prime minister in seven years to visit China as the two countries have recently begun to repair a relationship that had crashed over trade and security differences.“What I’ve said is that we need to co-operate with China where we can, disagree where we must and engage in our national interest,” Albanese said in Beijing. “I think there are promising signs we’ve already seen, a number of the impediments to trade between our two nations removed and an uplift already, substantial uplift in the trade between our two nations.”His visit is largely symbolic, and comes near the 50th anniversary of the first trip by an Australian prime minister to the People’s Republic of China. He is planned to meet with X...

Another ex-player is alleging Blackhawks’ former video coach sexually assaulted him in 2009-10

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:43:34 GMT

CHICAGO (AP) — A former hockey player in the Chicago Blackhawks organization has alleged in a lawsuit the team’s former video coach sexually assaulted him during the 2009-10 season and the Blackhawks responded inadequately to his complaint because it didn’t want a disruption during its Stanley Cup run.The Chicago Tribune reported Sunday the law firm of Romanucci & Blandin filed the lawsuit Thursday on behalf of their client, listed as “John Doe,” in Cook County Circuit Court. The Associated Press was unable to reach a representative from the law firm.The newspaper reported the plaintiff was a member of the Blackhawks’ “Black Aces” squad, which was made up of minor-league players who traveled with the NHL team during the playoffs to fill in in case of injuries.One of the player’s “Black Aces” teammates was Kyle Beach, who reached a settlement with the Blackhawks in December 2021 after alleging he was sexually assaulted by then-video coach Brad Aldrich.The ...

Prince William goes dragon boating in Singapore ahead of Earthshot Prize ceremony

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:43:34 GMT

SINGAPORE (AP) — Britain’s Prince William took to the waters in Singapore for a morning of dragon boating Monday, ahead of activities for the annual Earthshot Prize awards aimed at promoting solutions for the planet’s environmental threats. Donning a life vest and a black cap, the Prince of Wales sat in a long narrow boat as he paddled with athletes from the British Dragons club on the Kallang river. Working in pairs, William and the other 19 paddlers rowed vigorously to the steady beat of a drummer standing in the bow. His boat triumphed in a brief race with another boat captained by British High Commissioner Kara Owen. It was not the first time for William, an avid sportsman who tried his hand at dragon boating with his wife, Kate, the Princess of Wales, during a tour of Canada in 2011. Dragon boat racing, originating from China, can be traced back nearly 2,000 years before it became a modern international sport in 1976. “I was lucky enough to be sitting next to him, and he ...

5 men arrested with firearm and drug offences in Vaughan and Brampton

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:43:34 GMT

Officers from Peel police’s Specialized Enforcement Bureau STEP Team have arrested and charged five Brampton men with firearm-related and drug offences in addition to breach of conditions.On Friday at approximately 12:00 p.m., SEB officers along with the Peel police’s Tactical Unit located three men in the area of Highway 50 and Rutherford Road in Vaughan. As a result of an ongoing investigation by SEB, three men were arrested and charged with unauthorized possession of a firearm.Police searched the men and discovered they were were in possession of a FN 509 9mm pistol that contained a 24-round extended magazine loaded with 20 rounds. The men were informed of the additional charges. The same day at approximately 3:44 p.m., officers conducted a traffic stop in the area of Mountainash Road and Bovaird Drive in Brampton. Also involved in an ongoing investigation, officers arrested and charged two additional menwith unauthorized possession of a firearm.Two extended magazines...

Car crashes into pub’s outdoor dining area in Australia, killing 5 and injuring 6

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:43:34 GMT

MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — A car crashed into an Australian pub’s outdoor dining area, killing five people and injuring six others including the driver, officials said on Monday.The 66-year-old driver of the luxury BMW SUV was taken to a hospital after the crash at the crowded Royal Daylesford Hotel beer garden in the rural town of Daylesford, northwest of Melbourne, on Sunday evening, police said.The driver suffered shock and minor injuries and remained under police guard, Victoria Police Chief Commissioner Shane Patton said.Police investigators are trying to determine how the car came to mount a curb and crash into the roadside dining area. The driver tested negative for alcohol and his blood was being analyzed for other impairing substances, Patton said.A boy, two men in their 30s and a woman in her 40s died at the scene, police said. A teenage girl was flown to a Melbourne hospital where she died on Sunday night.Two boys, aged 11 months and around 6 years old, were taken to hos...

Arvada shelter-in-place order lifted as police continue to search for suspect in Westminster homicide

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:43:34 GMT

Police lifted a shelter-in-place order in Arvada on Sunday night after failing to locate the suspect in a fatal shooting earlier in the day in Westminster.Westminster police said officers responded to a reported shooting in the 9800 block of Westcliff Parkway around 9:50 a.m. Sunday. The caller told dispatchers two men were fighting, and one had shot the other.The shooting victim was taken to a local hospital, where he was pronounced dead, Westminster police said in a Sunday night news release.The shooting involved two individuals who knew each other, the Westminster Police Department said on social media Sunday.Officers will remain on scene for the next few hours as the location is processed. The shelter in place has been lifted. Any future information regarding the homicide case will be released by @WestminsterPD. We thank the community members for their patience during this unusually… https://t.co/BbKX4cTNXG— Arvada Police (@ArvadaPolice) November 6, 2023The suspect in the ...

African grey parrot worth $7,500 stolen from local pet store

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:43:34 GMT

In one of the more brazen combinations of retail theft and petnapping seen in Southern California, surveillance cameras captured a man stealing an incredibly valuable parrot from a Lake Forest pet store Sunday morning.  The incident unfolded at around 10:30 a.m. at Omar’s Exotic Birds, located at 23507 El Toro Road, when a man is seen on video holding the store’s prized possession, a Congo African grey parrot, worth about $7,500, according to the store’s manager, Cinder Strahl.  The 4-month-old African grey parrot stolen from Omar's Exotic Birds on Nov. 5, 2023. (Omar's Exotic Birds)“The Congo African grey is one of the most popular species of parrot,” Strahl told KTLA’s Shelby Nelson, adding that the bird is prized for its intellect, distinctiveness and dialect.  Surveillance footage shows several people in the store as the man, wearing a black jacket and red shirt, holds the parrot near his chest as he walks around, eventually walking out of the pet store when its f...

‘The whole building fell on us’: Blast at refugee camp in central Gaza kills dozens

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:43:34 GMT

(CNN) — Dozens were killed and many more injured in a blast at the Al-Maghazi refugee camp in the central Gaza Strip late Saturday, according to an official at a nearby hospital and eyewitnesses who spoke with CNN.The Hamas-controlled Ministry of Health in Gaza said 47 people were killed. The director of communications at the Al-Aqsa hospital, Mohammad al Hajj, told CNN the explosion was the result of an Israeli airstrike.Later Sunday, the hospital’s director, Dr Eyad Abu Zaher, said 52 people had been killed, differing from the health ministry’s figure.“One of the houses in the camp was struck. This house was crowded with residents. Its residents were bombed while they were safe in their homes,” added head of nursing Dr. Khalil Al-Daqran.The Israeli military did not have an immediate comment as to whether it was targeting the area. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) says it is looking into the circumstances around the explosion.One resident of the camp to...

Burrow passes for 348 yards and 2 TDs and Bengals’ defense clamps down on Bills in 24-18 win

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:43:34 GMT

CINCINNATI (AP) — Joe Burrow threw for a season-high 348 yards and had two touchdown passes as the Cincinnati Bengals beat the Buffalo Bills 24-18 in a key AFC matchup Sunday night for their fourth straight victory. Burrow was 31 for 44 while completing passes to eight receivers, with tight ends Irv Smith Jr. and Drew Sample making the touchdown grabs. Tee Higgins had eight receptions for a season-high 110 yards for the Bengals (5-3).Meanwhile, Cincinnati’s defense kept Josh Allen and the Bills (5-4) playing from behind throughout. Cam Taylor-Britt intercepted Allen to shut down a drive in the second quarter. Nick Scott upended Buffalo tight end Dalton Kincaid and recovered the fumble on the Cincinnati 13-yard line in the third quarter.The subsequent Bengals drive ate up 5:20 and a 20-yard field goal by Evan McPherson extended Cincinnati’s lead to 24-10.Allen threw a 17-yard touchdown pass to Stefon Diggs and the two connected on a 2-point conversion pass to cut the lead...

Memphis beats Portland 112-100 for first win of the season

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:43:34 GMT

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Desmond Bane had 30 points and the Memphis Grizzlies won their first game of the season, rallying late to beat the Portland Trail Blazers 112-100 on Sunday night. Jaren Jackson Jr. added 27 points for the Grizzlies, who opened the season with six straight losses, most since the 2002-03 season when the team opened 0-13.Jerami Grant led the Blazers with 27 points. The loss snapped a three-game winning streak. The Blazers led 86-62 going into the final quarter but were hurt when Robert Williams III was knocked to the ground underneath the Grizzlies’ basket and came up limping. He tried to play, but left the court and headed straight for the locker room.Memphis went on a 9-0 run to get within 98-95 with 5:26 left, then tied it at 100 on Jackson’s dunk. He scored again to put the Grizzlies in front and they led the rest of the way. Shaedon Sharpe added 18 points and eight rebounds for the the Blazers, while Malcolm Brogdon had his second straight double-...