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European Council summit live: EU leaders meet amid Israel-Hamas, Ukraine wars

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:32:16 GMT

BRUSSELS — It’s unprecedented: This summit of European Union leaders is taking place as peace is shattered around Europe and in the Middle East.Russia’s war in Ukraine grinds on after more than a year and a half. Tensions are again rising between Serbia and Kosovo in the Balkans after decades of uneasy quiet. Warnings of ethnic cleansing emerged from Nagorno-Karabakh, the Armenian enclave Azerbaijan recently annexed in a military offensive.And then there’s Israel war Hamas in Gaza, where violent war erupted amid the longer conflict earlier in October when Hamas launched an attack on Israel, and Israel retaliated with thousands of airstrikes on the Palestinian territory. As Israel prepares a ground invasion of Gaza, EU leaders have been struggling to find a common line on the Israel-Hamas war. And they’re concerned this conflict is overshadowing all others.With recent elections in numerous European countries reshaping the political landscape, this summit ...

Police ID man arrested in connection with crucifix vandalism at Cathedral of the Holy Cross in Boston

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:32:16 GMT

Boston police say a suspect was taken into custody after an exterior crucifix was vandalized at the historic Cathedral of the Holy Cross in Boston overnight.The arms of Jesus on the crucifix were broken and left dangling after police say Michael Patzelt, 37, of Attleboro, allegedly climbed up and attempted to swing and hang from the cross.“The suspect broke both the statues arms prior to officers responding and placed him under arrest,” the Boston Police Department stated in a news release, noting that Patzelt had also knocked off a female victim’s headwear before approaching the crucifix.The 37-year-old was later charged with Assault & Malicious destruction of property. A spokesman for the Archdiocese of Boston later stated – “Unfortunately, the Cathedral experienced vandalism at the exterior crucifix … It’s now in the capable hands of the BPD. The Archdiocese will work with the Cathedral to assess the damage.”The Cathedral of the...

Editorial: Tyson Bagent offers pleasure and inspiration for Chicago Bears fans

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:32:16 GMT

It may not quite be Bagentmania yet, but Tyson Bagent’s sparkling turn in his first NFL start on Sunday represented welcome fun for a Bears fan base unused to the concept.The undrafted rookie out of Division II Shepherd University of West Virginia — hardly a heralded cradle of star quarterbacks — not only capably led the Bears offense, he flourished in what ended up being a lively victory over the Las Vegas Raiders.The networks lapped it up. And, judging from some intermittent check-ins on local sports talk radio, more than a few Bears fans are now getting carried away with visions of the next Tom Brady.That’s OK. That’s fun too.Sports so often provides broader life lessons useful to those of us not gifted with sprinter speed or rocket arms. So it was with Bagent, who after the game spoke of how hard he’d worked to get to this level and how he’d prepared himself to succeed when he got there.Boiled down, it all came out to lots of hard work, ...

‘There’s a defiance to him’: How Coby White redefined his game to get a 2nd chance as the Chicago Bulls starting point guard

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:32:16 GMT

Coby White knows second chances are a rarity in the NBA. When he takes the floor as the starting point guard for the Chicago Bulls in Wednesday’s opener against the Oklahoma City Thunder, White will carry with him a simple mantra: This opportunity won’t come again.White already had his shot at the starting point guard job back in the 2020-21 season. It didn’t go according to plan — which was understandable.White was 20 at the time. He believed the most important part of his game was scoring. He didn’t know how to steady an offense amid the fervent pace of play in the NBA.And looking back, White feels he didn’t understand the weight of the position and the expectations it carried.“I was younger then. You don’t realize how difficult it is to start,” White said. “You kind of take it for granted. When I got into the league — just like a lot of other guys — you think you’re entitled or you deserve something. I ...

Krystal Joy Brown shines on Broadway in Stephen Sondheim revival of ‘Merrily We Roll Along’

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:32:16 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — Krystal Joy Brown has planted her flag on Broadway — first professionally and now personally. The singer and actor just bought an apartment a few blocks from where she’s earning a living at the Hudson Theatre, making one of the biggest commitments of her life. “This is where I’m supposed to be,” she says. “This is the place, I think, where dreams happen.”How perfectly appropriate that Brown is co-starring in a musical love letter to Broadway — a critically acclaimed revival of Stephen Sondheim’s “Merrily We Roll Along.”“This is my first ever Sondheim show, so that feels like a very big milestone in my career. It’s like Shakespeare and Sondheim and August Wilson. Those are the things you want to hit and it’s such an honor.”This new “Merrily We Roll Along” is a redemption of sorts for a musical that was considered a flop when it arrived in 1981, a show whose story by George Furth goes backward in time from 1976 to 1957 as it examines the friendship of...

Ontario asks for finance ministers’ meeting on Alberta’s proposal to exit CPP

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:32:16 GMT

Ontario Finance Minister Peter Bethlenfalvy is asking federal Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland to convene a meeting to discuss Alberta’s proposal to withdraw from the Canada Pension Plan, saying the move could cause “serious harm.”Bethlenfalvy has written to Freeland to ask for a federal-provincial-territorial meeting of finance ministers and is calling for a “rigorous analysis” of the assumptions Alberta is using to justify its plan.He says that when people across the country are facing increasing pressures on household budgets, they shouldn’t have to worry about the security of their retirement savings.The Alberta government commissioned a report that said the province would be entitled to leave CPP with $334 billion, more than half of the fund’s assets.That reported cited Alberta’s relatively younger working population, higher incomes, fewer seniors drawing CPP and years of high contributions from people in the province.The Canada...

S&P/TSX composite rises higher in mid-morning trading, U.S. markets mixed

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:32:16 GMT

TORONTO — Gains in industrials and battery metals helped lift Canada’s main stock index higher in mid-morning trading, while U.S. markets were mixed.The S&P/TSX composite index was up 73.41 points at 19,059.90.In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was up 68.19 points at 33,211.16. The S&P 500 index was down 31.79 points at 4,215.89, while the Nasdaq composite was down 195.41 points at 12,944.47.The Canadian dollar traded for 72.59 cents UScompared with 72.83 cents US on Tuesday.The December crude oil contract was down 13 cents at US$83.61 per barrel and the December natural gas contract was up four cents at US$3.86 per mmBTU.The December gold contract was down 50 cents at US$1985.60 an ounce and the December copper contract was down almost two cents at US$3.61 a pound.This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 25, 2023.Companies in this story: (TSX:GSPTSE, TSX:CADUSD)The Canadian Press

Man trapped in jewelry vault overnight is freed when timer opens the chamber as scheduled

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:32:16 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — A man was trapped inside a steel-reinforced concrete jewelry vault in New York City overnight after firefighters had to abandon an attempt to rescue him for safety reasons. Fortunately, the vault was on a timer and opened on its own Wednesday morning, officials said.The fire department was called to the midtown Manhattan building on Tuesday evening after the man became trapped while trying to access his safe deposit box, Assistant Fire Chief John Sarrocco said. The building at 580 Fifth Avenue is known as the World Diamond Tower and houses several jewelry businesses. Sarrocco did not explain how the man became trapped.Fire and police department personnel were in communication with the man inside the vault and could watch him on a security camera.Sarrocco said the fire department’s rescue units have tools that would be able to break through the vault’s 30-inch (76-centimeter) steel-reinforced concrete walls.“The process was started to breach the wall at th...

‘Humanitarian pauses’ in Israel-Hamas war don’t prevent advocacy on hostages: Gould

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:32:16 GMT

OTTAWA — Government House leader Karina Gould says there doesn’t need to be a choice between calling for the release of hostages held by Hamas and advocating for “humanitarian pauses” in its war with Israel.Gould said on Parliament Hill this morning that freeing the hostages, among whom may be two people with links to Canada, remains one of the government’s “top priorities.” Prime Minister Justin Trudeau joined other international leaders on Tuesday in saying he supports the idea of “pauses” in the Israel-Hamas conflict to allow humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip and give civilians and foreign nationals a way out. The Hamas-controlled Gaza Health Ministry says more than 5,700 people in the Palestinian territory have been killed since the war began.Israel retaliated with aggressive airstrikes on the densely populated territory after militants from Hamas, which Canada deems a terrorist group, stormed into Israel on Oct. 7, killing some...

Wanted Brampton man drove recklessly, accelerated through crowded parking lot: police

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:32:16 GMT

A Brampton man believed to be evading authorities is wanted for reckless driving and putting pedestrians at risk, police said.On October 21, just after 10:30 p.m., authorities received multiple calls for vehicles driving erratically in the College Plaza parking lot in Brampton.Responding officers said the driver of a Black Jeep Wrangler was performing reckless maneuvers while endangering pedestrians in the area. It’s alleged that after a brief interaction with police, the driver sped away from officers, dangerously accelerating through the crowded parking lot and striking a traffic sign on the way out.No injuries were reported.The male driver was identified as 26-year-old Gurprit Singh of Brampton. The suspect is believed to be evading police and is wanted on several charges, including dangerous operation of a motor vehicle, obstructing a peace officer and flight from a peace officer.