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New Zealand abandons Qatar friendly at halftime over alleged racist comment

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:48:53 GMT

WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — New Zealand abandoned its football friendly against Qatar at halftime in Austria on Monday after accusing a Qatari player of making a racist comment to defender Michael Boxall.In a statement issued on Tuesday, Football New Zealand said the team refused to play the second half when the referee declined to take action.New Zealand was leading 1-0 in Ritzing.The incident happened after Qatar was awarded a free kick. The New Zealanders complained Qatar’s Yousuf Abdurisag made a racist comment to Boxall, who is of Samoan heritage.After a melee between the teams in the 40th minute, New Zealand captain Joe Bell complained to referee Manuel Schuttengruber, who shook his head, indicating he would not take action against the Qatar player.“We fully support the action of our players, who agreed collectively this course of action,” New Zealand Football CEO Andrew Pragnell said in a statement. “We never want to see a match abandoned but some issues are bigger t...

Stock market today: Asian shares mostly slip after US markets were closed for a national holiday

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:48:53 GMT

TOKYO (AP) — Asian shares mostly declined Tuesday as some investors took a wait-and-see attitude after U.S. markets were closed for a national holiday. Some investors were also disappointed after a meeting between Chinese leader Xi Jinping and Secretary of State Antony Blinken yielded no signs of progress from either side on Taiwan, human rights, technology and other issues of contention. Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 shed 0.6% to 33,161.94. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 added 0.9% to 7,362.90. South Korea’s Kospi lost 0.3% to 2,601.07. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng dipped 1.4% to 19,627.86, while the Shanghai Composite edged down 0.2% to 3,248.53. The Chinese government said the meeting between Xi and the top U.S. diplomat produced “candid and in-depth” talks. Bilateral relations are at their lowest point in decades. Both sides indicated a willingness to cooperate.“There is no doubt China and the U.S.A. need each other, and their relationship to be back on a more secur...

Virginia voters picking nominees in hotly contested legislative races

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:48:53 GMT

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — A Virginia legislative primary season marked by hard-fought campaigns in both parties will come to a close Tuesday, as voters pick their party’s nominee for dozens of seats, including some swing districts that will help determine the balance of power in the General Assembly. Both parties and both chambers have competitive contests on the ballot in the primary election. An unusually high number of sitting officeholders are also facing serious challenges in an election season upended by new political maps. This year marks the first cycle in which legislative candidates are running in districts created during the redistricting process that ended in late 2021. The new maps were drawn by outside experts without regard to incumbent protection. That’s contributed to a wave of retirements by many of the General Assembly’s veteran lawmakers and diminished the name-recognition advantage for incumbents, some of whom are running in almost entirely new dist...

POLITICO Pro Central Banker: BOE super supervision — Digital euro delay — R* expectations

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:48:53 GMT

Our one-stop source for central banking & monetary policy news.View in your browser or listen to audioBy GEOFFREY SMITHwith JOHANNA TREECK, BEN MUNSTER, HANNAH BRENTON, GIORGIO LEALI and IZABELLA KAMINSKASNEAK PEEK— “All systems go” at the BoE as the Old Lady probes into the deepest and darkest crevices of the financial system to better detect risks.— The European Commission’s long awaited proposals for a legal framework for a digital euro are delayed once again.— Bank of Finland’s Olli Rehn outlines why he thinks the financial system is still prone to lower rather than higher rates.POLICY TICKERECB 3.50% ⇡ — BOE 4.5% ⇡ — FED 5.25% ⇡— SNB 1.5% ⇡— BOJ -0.10% ⇣— RBA 4.10% ⇡— PBOC 3.65%⇣— CBR 7.5% ⇣ — BOC 4.75 ⇡— SARB 8.25% ⇡Good morning.  It’s the day of the Great Exception: by the time you open this, the People’s Bank of China will probably have cut its benchmark one- and five-year lending rates, in line with the 0.10 percent adjustment to its shorter...

San Diego researcher who helped discover Titanic wreckage mystified by missing submersible

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:48:53 GMT

SAN DIEGO - The search is on for a missing submersible that was on its way to the bottom of the ocean to see the Titanic wreckage. Crews lost contact with the deep-sea craft that was holding five people on board just over an hour and a half after it submerged. We know one of these people is a UK businessman and billionaire, Hamish Harding, who tweeted his excitement just hours before the departure. Officials say there is only enough oxygen on board for up to a 96-hour dive. The U.S. Coast Guard Boston sector is continuing their aerial search, exploring great depth of the Atlantic Ocean in search of a vessel that's about the size of a minivan to put things into perspective. The missing Canadian watercraft is now leaving Scripps Institute of Oceanography researcher Jules Jaffe along with the world mystified. Jaffe played a monumental role in the discovery of the infamous Titanic back in 1985. “Most people think, well how did they find the ship? Well, there was this mile and a half deb...

What's new at Belmont Park? Here's what to know

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:48:53 GMT

SAN DIEGO -- Belmont Park announced new attractions and updates that are coming to Belmont Park as part of its 98th birthday this summer.The soon-to-be new ride "Shipwreck Cove" is a tower featuring two seats per car that pulls riders up a rope and then drops them from the top, according to Belmont Park officials. The ride offers 360-degree views of the ocean and Mission Beach boardwalk as the tower slowly rotates on its own axis.Another new ride at the theme park is called Flip Out, which recently replaced "Control Freak." It is made up of two double-seat gondolas that rotate around two different rotation axles.The park has also expanded its arcade by over 1,600 square-feet, adding 14 new games and doubling the size of its Prize Shack for more opportunities to win prizes. VIDEO: Baby seal climbs onto Pacific Beach surfers’ boards In July, Belmont Park is debuting its new logo, signage, murals, website and merchandise.“As Belmont Park prepares for its 100th anniversary, ...

Rights group urges Pakistan to stop what it says are arbitrary arrests of Afghan refugees

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:48:53 GMT

ISLAMABAD (AP) — The international rights group Amnesty International called on Pakistan’s government on Tuesday to stop what it described as random arrests of Afghan refugees, including those with Pakistani visas.Millions of Afghans fled to Pakistan during the 1979-1989 Soviet occupation of their country, creating one of the world’s largest refugee populations. More than 100,000 Afghans crossed the border to avoid persecution at home after the Taliban seized power in August 2021. The Taliban have announced a pardon and urged Afghans not to leave the country.The majority of Afghan refugees living in Pakistan say they are facing delays in their visa processing and relocation to the United States and other countries.In a statement to mark World Refugee Day, the London-based watchdog urged Pakistan to “urgently stop arbitrarily arresting and harassing Afghan refugees and asylum seekers, many of whom are fleeing persecution by the Taliban.” It also expressed deep concern about the vulne...

Barricaded suspect taken into custody after standoff in Porter Ranch

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:48:53 GMT

A suspect who barricaded himself inside a home in Porter Ranch on Monday afternoon has been taken into custody after a nearly five hour long standoff.According to the LAPD, officers responded to calls of an assault with a deadly weapon in the 19100 block of Salt Lake Place around 5 p.m.When they arrived on scene, they found a 45-year-old woman suffering from an apparent stab wound and a 50-year-old man suffering from a contusion. Both victims were transported to a nearby hospital. One of the weapons used in the attack was believed to be a cast iron skillet, police said.The suspect barricaded himself inside the home's garage for several hours, and neighbors in surrounding residences were forced to evacuate.A suspect who barricaded himself inside a home in Porter Ranch on Monday afternoon has been taken into custody after a nearly five hour long standoff. (KTLA)A suspect who barricaded himself inside a home in Porter Ranch on Monday afternoon has been taken into custody after a nearl...

Investigation underway into I-880 shooting

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:48:53 GMT

OAKLAND – Gunshots were fired at a driver on southbound Interstate 880 in Oakland on Monday, authorities said.The shooting occurred around 8:40 a.m. on the 66th Avenue off-ramp, according to the California Highway Patrol. The driver was not injured, but their vehicle was damaged.A suspect and a suspect vehicle had not been identified as of Monday night, the CHP said.Anyone with information related to the case can call the CHP Oakland area office at 510-457-2875.Check back for updates.Related ArticlesCrime and Public Safety | Oakland police investigating 50th homicide of 2023 Crime and Public Safety | Woman shot inside East Oakland apartment Crime and Public Safety | Fremont man gets 40 years to life for ‘straight-up, cold-blooded’ murder he tried to pin on his boss Crime and Public Safety | Suspected Oakland music-video shooter pleads not guilty after Santa Cruz County pursuit, arrest Crime and Public Safety | ...

Never dead: Mike Yastrzemski’s walk-off splash hit gives SF Giants another improbable win

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:48:53 GMT

SAN FRANCISCO — By now, you should know not to count out these San Francisco Giants until the 27th and final out. Because, look, they did it again.Silenced for six innings Monday night by longtime nemesis Michael Wacha, trailing the Padres by two runs entering the ninth inning, the Giants manufactured yet another come-from-behind win, extending their season-best winning streak to eight games, walking off their division rivals in improbable fashion.Mike Yastrzemski, who homered once already in the sixth and scored the tying run in the bottom of the ninth, launched a walk-off splash hit in the bottom of the 10th to beat the Padres, 7-4. Yastrzemski, less than a week removed from another game-winning home run in St. Louis, emphatically dropped his bat and watch the ball sail into McCovey Cove — the counter in right field now reads 102 — before being mobbed by his teammates at home plate.“That was probably the first time I’ve actually enjoyed it a little bit,” Yastrzem...