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South Africa march demands a permanent Gaza cease-fire on day of solidarity with Palestinians

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:10:33 GMT

JOHANNESBURG (AP) — Members of South African political parties, civil society organisations and other supporters marched through the streets of Johannesburg on Wednesday demanding a permanent cease-fire in Gaza as they marked the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People.Rival political parties including the ruling African National Congress and the leftist opposition Economic Freedom Fighters were among the scores of demonstrators who marched across the Nelson Mandela Bridge to protest against Israel’s military offensive in Gaza against Hamas.Several other protests were planned around South Africa, where many including President Cyril Ramaphosa have compared Israel’s policies in Gaza and the West Bank with South Africa’s past apartheid regime of racial segregation.Veteran anti-apartheid activist Ronnie Kasrils called for the boycott and isolation of Israel over the current war.“All over the world, millions and millions are coming out and saying no, no, no. We...

Cutting-edge antibody therapy firm, AbCellera, to lay off 10 per cent of workforce

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:10:33 GMT

VANCOUVER — The Vancouver-based company that helped develop the first antibody therapy treatment for COVID-19 has announced layoffs amounting to 10 per cent of its workforce.AbCellera Biologics Inc., announced the cuts in a filing to the United States Securities and Exchange Commission.The filing says the layoffs and reorganization will help it “focus its efforts toward the clinical development of new antibody medicines for patients.”In May, AbCellera announced a $701-million infrastructure project to boost the overall scope of its Vancouver manufacturing plant.The company said the plan, backed by more than $375 million in federal and British Columbia funding, also included clinical trials.AbCellera’s statement to the SEC says it estimates it will incur approximately US$2.5 million in cash expense related to the layoffs but, with more than US$1 billion in available liquidity, it says it has sufficient capital to “execute on its strategy” beyond the next...

Barcelona may need water shipped in during a record drought in northeast Spain, authorities say

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:10:33 GMT

BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — Tighter water restrictions for drought-stricken northeast Spain went into effect Wednesday, when authorities in Catalonia said that Barcelona may need to have fresh water shipped in by boat in the coming months.Catalonia is suffering its worst drought on record with reservoirs that provide water for about 6 million people, including Spain’s second-biggest city Barcelona, filled to just 18% of their capacity. By comparison, Spain’s reservoirs as a whole are at 43% of their capacity.Spanish authorities and experts point to the impact of climate change in the increasingly hot and dry weather behind the extended drought in Catalonia.Barcelona has already been relying on Europe’s largest desalination plant for drinking water, and a sewage treatment and purification plant to make up for the drop in water from wells and rivers.Catalonia officially entered the “pre-emergency” phase for drought, which lowers the daily use per person from 230 to 210 liters (60 to 55 ga...

Court clears France’s justice minister of conflict of interest

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:10:33 GMT

PARIS (AP) — A special court has cleared France’s justice minister of conflict of interest, ruling he was not guilty of having used his office to settle personal scores. Once a high-profile lawyer, Eric Dupond-Moretti was accused of abusing his position to order probes targeting magistrates who investigated him, his friends and his former clients. Wednesday’s ruling marked a political victory for Dupond-Moretti, who had denied wrongdoing and refused to resign before or during his two-week trial.He was tried in a court for alleged wrongdoing by the government, the Court of Justice of the Republic. Three professional magistrates joined by 12 members of parliament — six from the lower house and six from the Senate — deliberated the case and issued the ruling. The proceedings marked the first time in modern France that a government minister was put on trial while still in office, according to legal historians. The Associated Press

Five journalists were shot in one day in Mexico, officials confirm

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:10:33 GMT

MEXICO CITY (AP) — Prosecutors in Mexico confirmed Wednesday that a reporter was shot and wounded the previous day in the western state of Michoacan, the fifth journalist shot in the country in one day.Maynor Ramón Ramírez was wounded along with a companion in the attack Tuesday in the city of Apatzingan, the newspaper ABC of Michoacan said. Earlier Tuesday, f our news photographers were shot in the neighboring state of Guerrero. The four in Guerrero were shot near a military barracks after they returned from a crime scene. They had been covering one of the many homicides that occur on a near-daily basis in the violence-wracked city of Chilpancingo. The shooting of five media workers in one day represents one of the largest mass attacks on reporters in Mexico in a decade.There was no immediate information on the condition of the journalists, all of whom worked for local newspapers or news sites.The shooting come just days after three journalists were abducted and held for days in Ta...

Venezuela’s planned vote over territory dispute leaves Guyana residents on edge

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:10:33 GMT

SURAMA, Guyana (AP) — Congregants of an Anglican church in a sparsely populated rainforest village in Guyana gathered recently to bid on a bounty of bananas, squash and other produce during a community event. They sang hymns and rang a bell after each successful bid.They offered grateful devotions typical of a harvest festival but also asked for peace for their community amid what they see as an existential threat. Their village, Surama, is part of Guyana’s Essequibo region — a territory larger than Greece and rich in oil and minerals that Venezuela claims as its own and whose future it intends to decide Sunday with a referendum.The practical and legal implications of the vote, which among other things calls for turning Essequibo into a Venezuelan state, remain unclear, but the referendum has left area residents on edge.“We are praying, we are hoping and we are having faith that nothing negative will come,” said Loreen Allicock, who led the congregation during the harvest festival. ...

Elton John to address Britain’s Parliament in an event marking World AIDS Day

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:10:33 GMT

LONDON (AP) — Elton John is to address Britain’s Parliament on Wednesday on his work fighting HIV at an event to mark World AIDS Day. The British star’s AIDS Foundation has led campaigns to extend a pilot government program to test people visiting hospitals’ emergency rooms for HIV. Under the program, which was recently introduced in London and other cities, including Manchester, anyone 16 years old or older who has their blood tested in an emergency room will also get tested for HIV, Hepatitis B and Hepatitis C, unless they opt out of the testing.John’s charity has urged the government to expand the service, which officials say has been key in discovering hundreds of undetected cases of HIV.On Wednesday, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak paid tribute to John’s AIDS Foundation, saying he was pleased its work was being celebrated in Parliament. “Sir Elton has been a powerful voice for change in the U.K. and the world,” Sunak told lawmakers. “Through the brillia...

2 suspects accused of breaking into east-end Toronto home, stealing vehicle

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:10:33 GMT

Toronto police are looking to identify two suspects wanted for allegedly breaking into an east-end home and then stealing the resident’s vehicle.Officers responded to a break-and-enter call in the area of Danforth and Woodbine avenues around 6:45 a.m. on Monday.Police say a man and a woman broke into a home. One of the suspects entered the house and allegedly stole several items, including a set of car keys.The suspects left the home, but investigators say they returned a short time later and also stole the vehicle.Police say one of the suspects, a woman, has long blonde hair and was wearing a white jacket. The second suspect, a man, has a medium build and a goatee. He was wearing a grey hooded “Nike” sweatshirt, grey pants, a red baseball hat, and black shoes.Investigators have released security camera images of the two suspects.

Taylor Swift is Spotify’s most-streamed artist of 2023 and releases vault song on streaming to thank fans

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:10:33 GMT

LOS ANGELES (AP) — It’s her, hi — Taylor Swift is Spotify’s 2023 most-played artist.According to Spotify Wrapped, Swift was 2023's most-streamed artist globally, raking in more than 26.1 billion streams since January 1. T. Swift took to "X' to thank fans, saying in part: "Um ok this is unreal?? I just wanted to say to anyone who listened to my music this year, anywhere in the world, thank you. Getting named Spotify’s Global Top Artist in 2023 is truly the best birthday/holiday gift you could’ve given me. We’ve seriously had THE MOST fun this year out there on tour and now this. Are you serious."As a thank you, Swift made "You're Losing Me," which is one of her vault songs, available for streaming on Wednesday.The pop powerhouse has dethroned Puerto Rican reggaetón star Bad Bunny, who held the coveted Spotify title for three years in a row beginning in 2020.He's in the number two slot in 2023, followed by The Weeknd in third, Drake in fourth, and regional Mexican musician P...

Blackhawks top Kraken 4-3 on whirlwind day

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:10:33 GMT

CHICAGO (AP) — Tyler Johnson and MacKenzie Entwistle scored in the second period, and the Chicago Blackhawks topped the Seattle Kraken 4-3 on Tuesday night.Jason Dickinson and Boris Katchouk also scored for Chicago, and Petr Mrazek made 33 saves. Joey Anderson added two assists.The Blackhawks had dropped six of seven. They held off the Kraken in the final minutes at the end of a difficult day.“I was really proud of the guys," said forward Nick Foligno, one of Chicago's alternate captains. “Even when we wavered, even when we had a dip and it looked like we were kind of giving them some goals, we just find our way back again.”Chicago announced that it is cutting ties with Corey Perry after the veteran forward engaged in what the organization called unacceptable conduct. The team said in a statement that an internal investigation showed Perry acted in violation of his NHL Standard Player Contract and club policies “intended to promote professional and safe work environments.”...