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Wagner chief to Moscow: Swap in Chechens in Bakhmut

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:10:47 GMT

Chechen units should relieve the Wagner forces in the battle for the fiercely contested Ukrainian city of Bakhmut, the head of the Russian paramilitary group urged Moscow on Saturday.Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin called for the Akhmat battalion, led by Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov, to take over the Bakhmut positions by midnight on May 10, in a letter to Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu dated Saturday and posted on Telegram.Prigozhin has threatened to pull the mercenary force out of Bakhmut amid a striking breakdown in relations between the Russian government and the paramilitary group. In a statement published Friday, Wagner commanders said Russian defense ministry units were supposed to back up the Wagner group’s flanks, but were struggling to do so. The commanders accused the Kremlin of artificially creating supply shortages and mass casualties. Prigozhin himself posted a video ranting from the front lines about fallen fighters.Kadyrov had offered to take over the position on Frid...

Taylor Swift returns to Nashville, reveals ‘Speak Now’ date

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:10:47 GMT

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Taylor Swift is playing catch-up with her fans this year in a massive and impressive stadium show that embraces her artistic reinventions.Nearly two months into the 52-show Eras Tour, Swift returned Friday to the origins of her musical career in Nashville, Tennessee, a city she outgrew as a country starlet destined for pop stardom.In front of 70,000 fans, Swift dropped the news that she would be releasing a re-recording of her Nashville-era 2010 record, “Speak Now,” on July 7.Swift started releasing new versions of her early albums in 2021, after a dispute over the ownership of the masters, which were sold to — and then by — music executive Scooter Braun. “Speak Now,” Swift’s third album, will also be the third “Taylor’s Version” recording — she released the re-recordings of 2008’s “Fearless” and 2012’s “Red” in 2021.“Speak Now” was an album she wrote entirely by herself and s...

Newburyport chemical plant explosion, worker’s death raise safety concerns

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:10:47 GMT

There are safety concerns at the site of a deadly blast in Newburyport, where Jack O’Keefe has been identified as the person who died in the explosion early Thursday morning.Investigators are still trying to determine what caused the explosion at the chemical plant where four other workers were hurt. Crews say there’s no danger to the community, but there are still concerns about the site itself.“The concern of the workers today is still an inhalation hazard, and it’s still a fire hazard because it’s all highly flammable material,” Newburyport Fire Department Chief Barry Salt said.The same location was also the site of an explosion in 2020 and a chemical fire in 2021.

Ohio couple joins forces in Star Wars ceremony: This is the wedding they were looking for

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:10:47 GMT

When Julia and Robert Jones discovered that a judge from the Akron Municipal Court in Ohio would be officiating “Star Wars”-themed weddings on May the Fourth, the couple felt the Force calling them to commit to the ceremony.“There was no other right decision, that was it,” Julia Jones said.“Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope” played in the background as the Akron couple joined six other couples in 15-minute wedding ceremonies Thursday at the Highland Universal Gathering Spot in Akron to mark May the Fourth, essentially a holiday for “Star Wars” fans.Most of the newlyweds dressed in traditional garments, such as white gowns or a shirt and tie. But the Joneses came dressed in long tunics for the theme — Julia resembling a member of the Sith, the franchise’s antagonists, and Robert looking like a Jedi.They held lightsabers while they exchanged vows in front of Julia’s parents and Akron Municipal Court Judge Ron Cable, who declared that “by the joining of the lightsabers, and by the...

Looking Glass: No need to look in every box; just grab the stuff and go!

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:10:47 GMT

Burglars broke into a sporting goods store in Huancayo, Peru, and stole 200 sneakers. Unfortunately for them, they were all for the right foot. They were unaware that some shops that sell footwear in high crime areas sometimes separate right and left sneakers to make it more difficult for thieves who are often in a hurry to leave the scene of a crime.AND SHE LIT UP A SMOKE FOR HER ENCORE: A woman attending a Los Angeles Philharmonic concert experienced a “loud and full-body, screaming orgasm” in the middle of Tchaikovsky’s fifth symphony. She was reportedly seen breathing heavily immediately afterwards, and one witness said that her expression of ecstasy was “wonderfully timed” to a “romantic swell” in the music, calling it “an expression of pure physical joy.”WHY DRINK MILK DURING A BURGLARY?: A man who broke into a café in Hastings, England, and stole the tip jar was caught because he left behind a carton of milk that he had with him when he came in, enabling police to obtain his ...

Canada Post issues its first stamp featuring King Charles III

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:10:47 GMT

OTTAWA — Canada Post has released its first definite stamp featuring King Charles as monarch.The Crown corporation says it is the first time the King has appeared on the Canadian stamp.The stamp was released at the ceremony in Ottawa marking the King’s coronation.Canada Post says the stamp continues the corporation’s long-standing tradition of issuing definitive stamps depicting the Canadian sovereign, dating back more than 170 years.It says the tradition began in 1851 with a pre-Confederation stamp featuring Queen Victoria, the King’s great-great-great grandmother.The definitive stamp features a portrait of Charles by photographer Alan Shawcross.This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 6, 2023.The Canadian Press

Tips surge after nurse practitioner charged with sex crimes

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:10:47 GMT

AMES, Iowa (AP) — More than 70 tips have poured in after an Iowa nurse practitioner who is accused of photographing a teen’s genitals during an exam was arrested on sex crime charges, police say. Several districts and one university also have issued alerts that Carl Markley, 44, performed school physicals for their students, although none of the charges against him allege that crimes occurred during those exams. Markley, who is free on bond, is charged with sexual exploitation of a minor, pimping, prostitution and human trafficking. The charges were filed in two batches, and police in Ames arrested him the second time Monday. His attorney, Nicholas Arthur Sarcone, didn’t immediately respond Saturday to a phone message and email from The Associated Press seeking comment. According to the affidavit, several electronic devices, a hidden camera clock and pen were seized from Markley’s residence. During examination of the seized devices, detectives located a commercial pornog...

Oprah tells class of 2023 to follow ‘still, small voice’

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:10:47 GMT

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Oprah Winfrey delighted graduates at her alma mater Tennessee State University on Saturday, telling the story of how she fell one credit short of graduating as she launched the media career that would make her a household name. Giving the commencement address at the historically Black university, Winfrey recalled that she was living with her father in East Nashville while attending college, helping out in his store, and presenting the weekend news at a Black radio station. That’s where the lead anchor of the local CBS television affiliate heard her voice. He called her at school to ask if she wanted a job. “I said, ‘No sir. TV? Not really, sir, because my father says I have to finish school, and school is just too important,’” Winfrey recalled. She then went back to class and related the conversation to her scene design professor who “looked at me as if I didn’t have the brains that God gave lettuce,” Winfrey said. He spoke to her father, and Winf...

Elected officials, dignitaries mark coronation of King Charles in Ottawa

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:10:47 GMT

The federal government honoured the coronation of King Charles III, Canada’s new head of state, with a ceremony of its own in the nation’s capital this morning.Elected officials and dignitaries attended the ceremony in Ottawa with speeches, musical performances and special unveilings.Leaders of federal parties, including the NDP’s Jagmeet Singh and the Conservative’s Pierre Poilievre, were absent from the event.Speaking to attendees, Intergovernmental Affairs Minister Dominic LeBlanc says millions of Canadians are witnessing the coronation of Canada’s sovereign for the first time in a country that is radically different from the one that witnessed the last coronation.He says as Canada evolves, its institutions do as well, including the monarchy.Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Gov. Gen Mary Simon are in London for the official coronation event, along with a Canadian delegation.

Off-duty police officer fatally shot in Avalon Park: police

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:10:47 GMT

CHICAGO — An off-duty police officer was fatally shot in the Avalon Park neighborhood, according to police. According to police reports, an officer who just completed a tour of duty was found with a gunshot wound in the 8100 block of South Blackstone Avenue around 1:42 a.m.Interim Police superintendent Eric Carter confirmed that she had just got off the job when she was fatally shot. Police confirmed that officer was on the job three years and that she worked out of the fifth district. Man shot and killed while loading car with groceries in Englewood "We ask you to keep officer and her family in your prayers," Carter said in a police debriefing Saturday morning. Mayor Lori Lightfoot met with the mother and siblings of the fallen officer. Mayor-elect Brandon Johnson released a statement as well:“This is a profound tragedy, and my heart breaks for the family of the young officer who was murdered early this morning on her way home from work. I’m outraged and devastated by this horri...