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Senior military leader: Canadians ‘overly comfortable’ as global security shifts

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:55:21 GMT

OTTAWA — The Canadian Joint Operations Command had an exceptionally busy year in 2023, evacuating Canadians from two countries and deploying troops to areas devastated by wildfires, floods and disasters. CJOC commander Vice-Admiral Bob Auchterlonie says there’s increasing pressure on the Armed Forces to respond to crises in Canada and around the world. In 2023, the Armed Forces helped fight wildfires across the country for more than four months.  In a year-end interview, Auchterlonie said there will have to be tradeoffs as Canada sends more troops abroad and climate change continues to cause extreme weather at home.At the same time, he says he thinks Canadians are “overly comfortable” about their safety in a rapidly changing world. He says it’s becoming difficult to be a middle power as competition increases between major global players like the U.S., China and Russia.   This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 31, 2023.The Canadian Press

Surfer dies after shark “encounter” in Hawaii

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:55:21 GMT

PAIA, Hawaii (AP) — A surfer in Hawaii has died after being injured in a shark encounter off Maui’s northern shore, according to the Maui Police Department. Authorities stopped short of calling the event an attack and didn’t describe the man’s injuries.Ocean Safety Officers grabbed and transported the man by jet ski to shore, where responders performed life-saving measures until medical personnel arrived and took the victim to a hospital for further treatment, police said in a news release.The man’s identity was not immediately released pending the notification of extended family and friends. Authorities did say the man was from Haiku, a small community on Maui’s north side.There were no initial signs of foul play. The investigation is ongoing and an autopsy is scheduled, according to the police department. The man was injured on Paia Bay, near Haiku, and shark warning signs were placed on beaches one mile on either side of the bay, according to Hawaii&...

Former Ugandan steeplechase Olympian Benjamin Kiplagat found fatally stabbed in Kenya

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:55:21 GMT

ELDORET, Kenya (AP) — Police in Kenya are investigating the slaying of three-time Ugandan Olympian Benjamin Kiplagat, whose body was found with stab wounds inside his brother’s car on Sunday morning, a local official said. Kiplagat had been driving the car before his body was discovered in the vehicle on the outskirts of Eldoret, a town located 312 kilometers (163 miles) west of Kenya’s capital, Nairobi, according to Stephen Okal, police commander from the nearby Moiben area.“This was murder, but we do not know the motive for now,” Okal said. As a long-distance runner, Kiplagat specialized in the 3,000-meter steeplechase. He represented Uganda in six World Athletics Championships and at the 2008, 2012 and 2016 Summer Olympics.He reached the semi-finals of the 2012 London Olympics.Athletics Kenya official Barnabas Korir mourned the athlete’s death.“We urge the police to speed up investigations and … book his killers,” Korir said.The Associated Press

‘Wonka’ ends the year No. 1 at the box office, 2023 sales reach $9 billion in post-pandemic best

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:55:21 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — Hollywood closed out an up and down 2023 with “Wonka” regaining No. 1 at the box office, strong sales for “The Color Purple” and an overall $9 billion in ticket sales that improved on 2022’s grosses but fell about $2 billion shy of pre-pandemic norms.The New Year’s weekend box office this year lacked a true blockbuster. (This time last year, “Avatar: The Way of Water” was inundating theaters.) Instead, a wide array of films – among them “Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom,” “The Boys in the Boat,” “Migration,” “Ferrari,” “The Iron Claw” and “Anyone But You” – sought to break out over the year’s most lucrative box-office corridor.The top choice, though, remained “Wonka,” Paul King’s musical starring Timothée Chalamet as a young Willy Wonka. In its third weekend, the Warner Bros. release collected an estimated $24 million Friday through Sunday and $31.8 million factoring in estimates for the Monday holiday. That brings the film’s domestical total to $142.5 million.That beste...

Reports: Former cycling world champ Dennis charged after Olympian wife struck, killed by vehicle

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:55:21 GMT

SYDNEY (AP) — Former world champion cyclist Rohan Dennis is reported to have been charged in connection with the death of his wife, Olympic cyclist Melissa Hoskins, who died after being struck by a vehicle while riding in Adelaide.Australian media reports said Dennis has been charged with causing death by dangerous driving, endangering life and driving without due care. The reports said he has been bailed to appear at the Adelaide Magistrates Court in March.Hoskins, 32, competed for Australia at the London and Rio de Janeiro Olympics.South Adelaide Police said emergency services were called to an address in Medindie, an Adelaide suburb, around 8 p.m. Saturday, following reports a woman had been struck by a vehicle.Police said the woman, later identified as Hoskins, suffered serious injuries and died after being transported to the Royal Adelaide Hospital. Dennis won gold medals in the team pursuit at the 2010 and 2011 World Championships and was world time trial champion in 2018 and ...

In rare apology, Israeli minister says she ‘sinned’ for her role in reforms that tore country apart

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:55:21 GMT

JERUSALEM (AP) — A former member of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Cabinet offered a rare public apology Sunday for contributing to the internal strife in Israel that preceded the Oct. 7 attack by Hamas militants from the Gaza Strip.The mea culpa by Galit Distel Atbaryan, a lawmaker from Netanyahu’s Likud Party, was one of the first times a Likud member has accepted responsibility for the polarized atmosphere ahead of the attack, which triggered a devastating war that has continued for nearly three months.Distel Atbaryan appeared to accept the argument that the internal divisions created perceptions of weakness that encouraged Hamas to attack.“I’m here sitting and telling you, the democratic, secular public: I sinned against you, I caused pain for you, I caused you to fear for your lives here, and I am sorry for this,” she told Channel 13 TV.Distel Atbaryan added that she was taking responsibility for her role in the massive protests and civil discord that erupted after N...

Live tonight: Fireworks, drone show set to welcome 2024

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:55:21 GMT

DALLAS (NEXSTAR/NBCDFW) -- We're just hours away from the most spectacular fireworks and drone show in the Central Time Zone to welcome 2024 and the new year! Sunday at 11:30 p.m., you'll see “Lone Star NYE 2024" featuring a remarkable nonstop 10-minute fireworks show that will illuminate the Dallas city skyline. The show includes breathtaking panoramic fireworks with more than 4,000 pyrotechnic special effects fired from 560 feet above ground atop the iconic Reunion Tower.The fireworks will be accompanied by a 300-drone light show. Engineered and flown by DFW-based Sky Elements, the drones will light up the sky at heights of up to 700 feet and create an array of visual elements and an immersive experience never seen before above the Dallas skyline. You'll be able to watch the program live in the player at the top of this story beginning at 11:30pm CT. Before and after the fireworks, Bowling for Soup and two other Texas musical acts will hit the stage. Known for their humor and...

Jace Frederick: After nearly costing Timberwolves a game, it’s time for Jaden McDaniels to mature

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:55:21 GMT

The Timberwolves had the Los Angeles Lakers beat Saturday night at Target Center.A Mike Conley 3-pointer to put Minnesota up by seven points with 35 seconds to play should have been the official slamming of the door, directly in the Lakers’ faces.But then Jaden McDaniels stopped, turned around and not-so-politely opened it back up for Minnesota’s counterparts. McDaniels was tasked with the unenviable job of defending LeBron James on the ensuing possession. But, in that spot, you know that even if James scores two points, that doesn’t really hurt you.So when James drove at McDaniels, all the Wolves’ premier perimeter defender had to do was contest straight up and wait to find out if James made the shot. If he did, so be it. Minnesota was still well on its way to victory.But, instead, McDaniels lowered his hand at the peak of James’ shot, which led the official to blow the whistle as James hit the runner. And-1. Minnesota’s lead could potentially be...

Missouri gives coach Drinkwitz a contract extension through the 2028 season

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:55:21 GMT

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Missouri rewarded coach Eliah Drinkwitz a contract extension through the 2028 season on Sunday after he led the Tigers to an 11-2 record and a victory over Ohio State in the Cotton Bowl.Drinkwitz's contract was due to expire after the 2027 season. The extension approved by the Missouri Board of Curators also is expected to include a bump in pay, though the school had yet to announce the financial details.Drinkwitz was hired before the 2020 season after a single but ultra-successful season at Appalachian State, where he went 12-1 and won the New Orleans Bowl. The timing could not have been worse — the COVID-19 pandemic made it difficult for him to build the program — and the result was three straight .500 regular seasons and two losses in bowl games.Despite the relatively mediocre results, Missouri gave the 40-year-old coach an extension in 2022 that took his pay to $6 million per year, and Drinkwitz made it pay off this season. Picked to finish in the middle ...

American democracy has overcome big stress tests since the 2020 election. More challenges are ahead.

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:55:21 GMT

Over the past three years, the world’s oldest democracy has been tested in ways not seen in decades. A sitting president tried to overturn an election and his supporters stormed the Capitol to stop the winner from taking power. Supporters of that attack launched a campaign against local election offices, chasing out veteran administrators and pushing conservative states to pass new laws making it harder to vote.At the same time, the past three years proved that American democracy was resilient.Former President Donald Trump’s attempts to overturn the 2020 election results failed, blocked by the constitutional system’s checks and balances, and he now faces both federal and state charges for those efforts. Then the voters stepped in. In every presidential battleground state, they rejected all candidates who supported Trump’s stolen election lies and were running for statewide offices that had some oversight of elections.The election infrastructure in the country performed well, with on...