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First presidential visit since 2016 brings heavy security presence to Ottawa

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:00:53 GMT

OTTAWA — At least seven different police and military units will be patrolling Ottawa’s skies and streets this week as the city braces for the arrival of U.S. President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden.They are set to arrive Thursday for the first official visit to Canada since Biden took office as president in 2021 and will stay overnight until Friday. The last time the country hosted a president was in 2016, when former president Barack Obama came to Ottawa for the North American Leaders’ Summit near the end of his second term.Biden’s sojourn will take place under a heavy police presence, with the RCMP saying security for him and the first lady will be provided through an integrated security unit. The Mounties say they are working with the Canadian military, the U.S. Secret Service, the Ontario Provincial Police and the Parliamentary Protective Service, as well as local officers in Ottawa and across the river in Gatineau, Que.Retired Ottawa police chief Charle...

Newsmax returns to DirecTV, inks multiyear distribution deal

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:00:53 GMT

Newsmax is returning to DirecTV after a dispute between the parties saw the conservative network removed from the satellite carrier.The duo were initially unable to agree to financial terms on an agreement, which led to DirecTV losing the rights to distribute Newsmax programming on Jan. 25. The companies said Wednesday that they’ve now reached a multiyear distribution deal that will see the Newsmax channel return to DirecTV, DirecTV Stream and U-verse starting on Thursday. Financial terms were not disclosed.“As a stand-alone company, DirecTV helped give Newsmax its start nearly a decade ago as it continues to do with upcoming news networks, which is why we are pleased to reach a mutually beneficial agreement that will deliver our network to DirecTV, DirecTV Stream and U-verse customers over the next several years,” Newsmax CEO Christopher Ruddy said in a statement on Wednesday.The Associated Press

Israeli foreign minister visits Poland to restore ties

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:00:53 GMT

WARSAW, Poland (AP) — The foreign ministers of Israel and Poland hailed a meeting they had Wednesday as a breakthrough in restoring a relationship that has been badly damaged for years due to disagreements over how to remember Polish behavior during the Holocaust.The ministers signed an agreement that they said would allow for the resumption of Israeli youth trips to Poland, one of several tension-causing points of contention between the two countries. Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen’s visit to Poland was the first at that level since 2018. Poland’s Foreign Ministry said Israeli President Isaac Herzog plans to attend observances next month for the 80th anniversary of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising, an armed 1943 revolt by Jews in German-occupied Poland . “I came here to restore the relationship between our countries, and I found in you, my distinguished colleague, a trusted partner,” Cohen said at a news conference alongside Polish Foreign Minister Zbigniew Rau, whom he r...

US stocks edge lower ahead of Fed decision on interest rates

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:00:53 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — Stocks edged lower on Wall Street Wednesday ahead of the Federal Reserve’s announcement in the afternoon about whether it will tighten the screws further on the economy. The S&P 500 fell 0.3% in afternoon trading. It’s coming off its first back-to-back gain in two weeks, before the second- and third-largest U.S. bank failures in history threw the industry into turmoil. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 140 points, or 0.4%, to 32,421 as of 1:11 p.m. Eastern time, while the Nasdaq composite fell 0.1%.Markets are waiting for the Fed, which is stuck with a difficult decision: whether to keep hiking interest rates to drive down inflation or to ease off the increases given the pain it’s already caused for banks, which could drag down the rest of the economy.A few weeks ago, much of Wall Street was convinced the Fed would pick up the pace on rate hikes given how stubbornly high inflation has remained. The bet was for the Fed to raise rates by 0.50 percentage points ...

Israeli army admits to covert influence campaign in Gaza war

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:00:53 GMT

JERUSALEM (AP) — Days into Israel’s devastating war with Gaza militants in 2021, the Israeli army began deploying keyboard warriors to a second front: a covert social media operation to praise the military’s bombing campaign in the coastal enclave.The Israeli military acknowledged Wednesday that it made a “mistake” in launching the secretive influence campaign on social media in an effort to improve the Israeli public’s view of Israel’s performance in the conflict. The online campaign, which failed to gain traction, was one of several contentious steps taken by the Israeli military in the bloody 11-day war. The fighting killed over 260 Palestinians and 13 Israelis as the military bombed the Hamas-ruled territory and Palestinian militants launched rockets at Israel. Israel’s Haaretz daily first exposed the social media operation on Wednesday, reporting that the army employed fake accounts to conceal the campaign’s origin and engage audiences on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and TikTok...

Americans’ faith in banks low after failures: AP-NORC poll

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:00:53 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — Only 10% of U.S. adults say they have high confidence in the nation’s banks and other financial institutions, a new poll finds. That’s down from the 22% who said they had high confidence in 2020.Following the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank this month, the poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research also finds that a majority say the government is not doing enough to regulate the industry.The underwhelming assessment of America’s banks and bank regulation comes after a series of shocks brought back disturbing memories of the 2008-2009 financial crisis. Silicon Valley Bank, the nation’s 16th-biggest, failed March 10 after making risky bets in the bond market. Two days later, regulators closed New York-based Signature Bank, which had gotten involved in cryptocurrencies. Across the Atlantic Ocean, long-troubled Credit Suisse was acquired by rival UBS on Sunday in a shotgun marriage designed to restore confidence in global financial ins...

Man charged after Northwest Indiana woman found beaten to death

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:00:53 GMT

WINFIELD, Ind. — A Northwest Indiana man was charged following the death of a Winfield woman last month.Raju Rawal, 65, of Merrillville, is facing a murder charge related to the Feb. 23 death of Haley Losinski, 36.On the evening of Feb. 27, Losinski's parents found her dead in her Winfield home, located in the 11200 block of Pike Place.Officers initially suspected foul play and Losinski's cause of death was determined to be blunt force trauma to the head. Previous - Winfield police: Parents find 36-year-old daughter dead inside home; homicide investigation ongoing After originally not finding a weapon, investigators later returned to the home and found a rubber mallet, according to the Northwest Indiana Times. Police believe Rawal had been in a personal relationship with Losinski.He is being held without bail and his next court hearing is scheduled for May 19.

Outbreak linked to eyedrops leaves 68 infected, 8 blind and 3 dead, CDC says

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:00:53 GMT

(WFLA) — U.S. officials are reporting two more deaths and additional cases of vision loss linked to eyedrops tainted with a drug-resistant bacteria.The outbreak has infected 68 people in 16 states, according to the latest update from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The bacteria has now caused a total of three deaths and eight cases of people losing their vision, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported on Tuesday. That's up from one death and five cases of permanent vision loss reported last month.The CDC said four people have undergone surgery to remove an eyeball due to the infections.The CDC said it is investigating the outbreak of an extensively drug-resistant strain of Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Health officials said the stain, called VIM-GES-CRPA, had never been reported in the United States prior to the outbreak."Most patients reported using artificial tears," the CDC said. "Patients reported over 10 different brands of artificial tears and so...

Utah mom dresses as traffic cone to keep drivers alert: 'Every day I see people distracted'

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:00:53 GMT

WEST VALLEY, Utah (KTVX) – Motorists driving through West Valley, Utah, may have noticed a an especially large traffic cone in the intersection near Gearld L. Wright Elementary School on Tuesday morning.That's Whitney Durfee. Durfee, a crossing guard from nearby Vineyard, Utah, was turning heads and stopping cars Tuesday while dressed as a traffic cone, all in an effort to share a message about safety.“Just to remind people that I'm here and they need to slow down," Durfee told Nexstar's KTVX. "People react really differently, a lot of smiles, a lot of laughter, and it’s been fun." Terrifying Video: Kids in NC nearly hit at bus stop, alleged driver arrested “Every day I see people distracted. A lot of times it's the parents," she added. "They're worried about getting their kids to and from school and don't check their surroundings."Durfee said she sees close calls near the school almost weekly, including a recent incident where a car stopped just a foot away from her. Diana H...

80s make a return ahead of isolated severe risk

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:00:53 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) -- Less rain and more warmth expected today compared to the gray weather that took hold of most of the area yesterday.Cloudy skies to start the afternoon will gave way to increasing sun late in the afternoon. High temperatures will return to the 80s with noticeable winds gusting 20-25 mph, both of which will combine to bring the warmth.Tomorrow will look and feel about the same - morning clouds with a few pockets of drizzle followed by some afternoon sunshine and 80s.Timing of our next cold front looks to get pushed a little later into the morning Friday, meaning less of a threat overnight but more impacts to Friday's morning commute.A cold front will move into the Hill Country in the pre-dawn hours on Friday and push southeast through early afternoon. A few isolated strong to severe storms are possible - mainly in the Hill Country - in the early morning hours on Friday.Line of storms expected to move in early Friday morningLow risk of strong to severe storms overnigh...