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Israeli media, also traumatized by Hamas attack, become communicators of Israel’s message

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:00:00 GMT

When 85-year-old Israeli woman Yocheved Lifshitz was released from Hamas captivity last week, she was warmly welcomed home. Then she began to speak.Addressing reporters from a wheelchair at a hospital, Lifshitz described a harrowing experience in Hamas captivity but also said she had been fairly treated. Israeli media instantly seized on that nuanced portrayal as a blow to the country’s messaging that Hamas are savages.A flurry of op-eds, social media posts and on-air discussion by Israeli journalists counseled Israeli officials how to manage further hostage releases to ensure Israel’s narrative was being effectively communicated.The episode brought into focus the dual role played by Israeli media following Hamas’ devastating Oct. 7 attack on southern Israeli communities and the war that it set off. Beyond their traditional function as journalists, Israeli reporters are also in many ways acting as public advocates on behalf of the Israeli war effort, showing how deeply the tra...

Son of Canadian hostage in Gaza: “Military actions don’t solve anything”

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:00:00 GMT

OTTAWA — The son of a Canadian woman believed to be among those held hostage by Hamas in Gaza wants the world to push for an end to the fighting and says he fears Israel’s escalating offensive could end all chance of bringing his mother safely home. Yonatan Zeigen’s mother, Vivian Silver, is one of an estimated 229 hostages taken by Hamas during its bloody Oct. 7 rampage in Israel.Hamas fighters breached Israel’s defences and stormed into nearby towns like Silver’s, gunning down civilians and soldiers in a surprise attack that killed at least 1,400 people.Since then, Israel has drastically limited electricity and food in the territory, and this weekend has ramped up air and land assaults ahead of an expected full-scale invasion of the densely populated territory.Zeigen says Silver raised him to believe that peace is the only way to solve the decades of conflict in the Middle East, and he’s worried that hostages will die if there is a ground invasion.Zei...

Colombian police continue search for father of Liverpool striker Díaz

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:00:00 GMT

BOGOTA, Colombia (AP) — Colombian police continued their search for the father of Liverpool striker Luis Díaz on Sunday, one day after he was kidnapped with his wife near the country’s border with Venezuela.Luis Manuel Díaz and Cilenis Marulanda were kidnapped on Saturday by gunmen in their city of Barrancas, near the Caribbean. Marulanda was rescued at night, but her husband remains with the criminals, police said.Police director William Salamanca said he told the footballer on the phone he had put all of his efforts to find his father. He also told the Liverpool striker his mother is safe and unharmed.“We will spare no effort in this situation that has moved all of us Colombians,” Salamanca said.Díaz was released from playing at Anfield on Sunday at Liverpool’s 3-0 Premier League victory against Nottingham Forest. Striker Diogo Jota held his teammate’s number seven shirt aloft after opening the scoring.Coach Jurgen Klopp said he removed Díaz from the squad due to...

6 people were killed and 40 injured when two trains collided in southern India

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:00:00 GMT

HYDERABAD, India (AP) — Two passenger trains collided in southern India on Sunday, killing six people and inuring 40, officials said.The crash happened in Andhra Pradesh state’s Vizianagaram district when an incoming train slammed into a stationary train, leading to derailment of at least three rail cars, senior railway officer Saurab Prasad said.Multiple rescue teams and residents were extracting injured passengers from the wreckage.Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy asked authorities to send as many ambulances as possible to the crash site and ordered other relief measures.Train crashes are common in India and are often blamed mostly on human error or outdated signaling equipment.In June, more than 280 people were killed in one of the country’s deadliest rail crashes in decades after two passenger trains rammed into each other in eastern India.More than 12 million people ride 14,000 trains across India every day, traveling on 64,000 kilometers (40,000 miles) of tra...

Beloved actor Matthew Perry grew up in Canada and is linked to big names in politics

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:00:00 GMT

Matthew Perry’s iconic performance on “Friends” may forever link him with New York City, but the actor behind Chandler Bing described himself as half Canadian and had deep ties to some of the biggest names in Canadian politics.The 54-year-old actor was found dead in his Los Angeles home Saturday.Perry detailed his childhood spent growing up in Canada with his mother in his memoir, published a year before his death.Perry lived between Ottawa, Montreal and Toronto with his Canadian mother, Suzanne Perry, who worked as press secretary for then-prime minister Pierre Trudeau and later as a national anchor for Global News.In a 2017 interview on “Jimmy Kimmel Live,” Perry recalled beating up a young Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in the schoolyard when he was in Grade 5. Trudeau responded at the time with a social media post inviting Perry to a rematch, quipping, “who hasn’t wanted to punch Chandler?”The prime minister responded to Perry’s death in a tweet late...

Russians commemorate victims of Soviet repression as a present-day crackdown on dissent intensifies

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:00:00 GMT

LONDON (AP) — Russians commemorated the victims of Soviet state terror on Sunday, while the Russian government continues its crackdown on dissent in the country.The “Returning of the Names” event was organized by the Nobel Peace Prize-winning human rights group Memorial.The commemoration has traditionally been held in Moscow on Oct. 29 — the eve of Russia’s Remembrance Day for the Victims of Political Repression — at the Solovetsky Stone memorial to victims of Soviet-era repression, and centers on the reading out of names of individuals killed during Joseph Stalin’s Great Terror of the late 1930s.Since 2020, Moscow authorities have refused to grant a permit for the demonstration. This is allegedly owing to the “epidemiological situation” and a ban on holding public events, though supporters of Memorial believe the refusal is politically motivated.Memorial itself was ordered to close by the Moscow authorities in November 2021. Although it was shut down as a legal entity in Russia, th...

Kentucky Derby winner Mage out of Breeders’ Cup Classic, trainer says horse has decreased appetite

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:00:00 GMT

ARCADIA. Calif. (AP) — Kentucky Derby winner Mage won’t run in the $6 million Breeders’ Cup Classic, his trainer said Sunday.Mage had yet to travel to California for the world championships next weekend at Santa Anita.“He presented a feverish state this morning and we have noticed symptoms of loss (of) appetite,” trainer Gustavo Delgado posted on social media.“We were very enthusiastic about the condition that the horse was going through, and despite how disappointed we feel right now, we are confident in a speedy recovery.”Ramiro Restrepo, a co-owner of Mage, also posted, “Timing stinks but lucky we caught it early. Can’t run at below 100%; horse comes first. Onwards to the Pegasus and his 4YO campaign.”The Pegasus World Cup is Jan. 27 at Gulfstream.Mage, who won the Derby at 15-1 odds, finished third in the Preakness, second in the Haskell and was last in the Travers, his most recent start on Aug. 26.His defection leaves the Classic with just one Triple Crown rac...

Fire set at Montreal bakery in third criminal attack since May: SPVM

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:00:00 GMT

Montreal police say they’re investigating after a fire was set at a bakery that has been targeted by criminals two other times since May.   Police say they were called to the bakery, in the northern Montreal borough of Ahuntsic-Cartierville, shortly before 3 a.m. after suspicious people allegedly tried to enter.They say the suspects started a fire and then fled before officers arrived. Police say firefighters quickly brought the blaze under control and incendiary objects were found on the scene.The bakery was the target of an arson in late May, when a Molotov cocktail was thrown through a window. Earlier this month, police said that gunshots were fired at the bakery. 

10 shot, 1 dead after Halloween party in Indianapolis

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:00:00 GMT

INDIANAPOLIS — Police are investigating after ten people ages 16-22 were shot, leaving one dead, after a party on Indy's northeast side Sunday morning.According to the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department, officers said the incident happened around midnight in the 5100 block of East 65th Street. 15 shot at Halloween party in North Lawndale: CPD When officers arrived, they heard gunshots in the area and saw a large crowd of people fleeing the area. Officers found at least ten victims with gunshot wounds. Police say one of the victims is a woman who died after the shooting.Her identity hasn't been released.Police say all the other victims are between the ages of 16-22 years old and are not in critical condition. Police said there was large gathering of teenagers and young adults in the area when gunfire broke out."This Halloween event was specifically promoted and geared towards teens and young adults," IMPD Assistant Chief Chris Bailey said. "We also need to hold accountable...

Fruit puree pouches recalled after elevated lead levels found in North Carolina children: FDA

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:00:00 GMT

RALEIGH, N.C. (WNCN) -- Recalled fruit puree pouches may be to blame for elevated blood lead levels among some North Carolina children, state officials announced Saturday.The U.S. Food and Drug Administration released an advisory warning consumers not to buy or give WanaBana apple cinnamon fruit puree pouches to toddlers and young children because the product may contain elevated levels of lead.The WanaBana apple cinnamon fruit puree pouches, pictured below, are sold nationally at several retailers, including Sam’s Club, Amazon, and Dollar Tree.WanaBana apple cinnamon fruit puree pouches are sold nationally through several retailers including Sam’s Club, Amazon and Dollar Tree. (U.S. FDA)The announcement came after an investigation by the FDA, North Carolina health officials, local health departments, and the North Carolina Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services."As part of the investigation, NCDHHS analyzed multiple lots of the product, detecting extremely high concentrati...