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Failed Wagner revolt leaves a question in Africa: Will the ruthless mercenaries remain?

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 19:11:59 GMT

BIRAO, Central African Republic (AP) — The Russian mercenary group that briefly threatened President Vladimir Putin’s authority has for years been a ruthless force-for-hire across Africa, protecting rulers at the expense of the masses. That dynamic is not expected to change now that the group’s founder, Yevgeny Prigozhin, has been exiled to Belarus as punishment for the failed rebellion.The Wagner Group brutalizes civilians in the Central African Republic, Mali and elsewhere to crush dissent and fend off threats to their leaders’ power. In exchange, Russia gains access to natural resources and ports through which weapons can be shipped, and receives payments that enrich the Kremlin and help it fund operations elsewhere, including the war in Ukraine.Neither Russia nor the African leaders dependent on Wagner’s fighters have any interest in ending those relationships. But many questions linger in the aftermath of Wagner’s stunning revolt, such as who will lead its thousands...

Tensions erupt in a Paris suburb after a 17-year-old delivery driver is killed in a police standoff

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 19:11:59 GMT

PARIS (AP) — A 17-year-old delivery driver was shot and killed by a police officer Tuesday in a Paris suburb, according to his family’s lawyers. The death unleashed tensions between angry residents setting barricades on fire and police firing tear gas.The police officer was detained on suspicion of manslaughter, according to the prosecutor’s office in the Paris suburb of Nanterre. It said the shooting took place during a traffic check.The victim was wounded by a gunshot and died at the scene, the prosecutor’s office said in a statement. A passenger in the car was briefly detained and released, and police are searching for another passenger who fled.Deadly use of firearms is less common in France than in the United States, and Tuesday’s death drew national attention. A team of three lawyers for the driver identified him as 17-year-old Nael M. In a statement, the lawyers rejected a reported statement by the police that officers’ lives were in danger because the driver had ...

Trump lawyer Rudy Giuliani interviewed in Jan. 6 investigation

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 19:11:59 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — Rudy Giuliani, who as a member of Donald Trump’s legal team sought to overturn 2020 presidential election results in battleground states, was interviewed recently by investigators with the Justice Department special counsel’s office.A spokesman for Giuliani confirmed he met with the special counsel. “The appearance was entirely voluntary and conducted in a professional manner,” Ted Goodman said in a statement. A person familiar with the matter said the interview was not done before a grand jury. The person, who insisted on anonymity to discuss an ongoing investigation, would not say what questions investigators asked.The interview is an additional sign of busy investigative activity by special counsel Jack Smith as his team of prosecutors scrutinizes efforts by Trump and his allies to undo the results of the election in the weeks before the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the Capitol. Smith filed a separate case earlier this month charging Trump with ...

Former Arkansas quarterback Ryan Mallett has died in an apparent drowning

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 19:11:59 GMT

DESTIN, Fla. (AP) — Former Arkansas quarterback Ryan Mallett, who also played for New England, Houston and Baltimore during five seasons in the NFL, has died. He was 35.Mallett died in an apparent drowning, according to the Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office. Mallett was a football coach at White Hall High School in his native Arkansas, and the school district also confirmed his death in a post on its website on Tuesday.Arkansas athletic director Hunter Yurachek said the university “lost an incredibly special person.”“Our thoughts and prayers are with the family, friends and teammates of Ryan Mallett,” Yurachek posted on Twitter.Mallett played for the University of Michigan for one season before finishing his college career at Arkansas. He passed for 7,493 yards and 62 touchdowns in two seasons with the Razorbacks.Mallett was selected by New England in the third round of the 2011 NFL draft. He appeared in four games with the Patriots during the 2012 season, completing 1 of 4 passes fo...

Gunmen abducted 14 police officers in the Mexican state of Chiapas

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 19:11:59 GMT

MEXICO CITY (AP) — A commando of armed men abducted 14 state police officers in southern Mexico on Tuesday, prompting a heavy deployment of federal and local forces, authorities said.The Secretary of Security and Citizen Protection in Chiapas state said in a statement the 14 officers were all men and an air and ground operation was underway to locate them. An official with the state police force, who asked not to be quoted because he was not authorized to speak to the press, said the agents were traveling to the capital of Chiapas in a personnel transport truck when they were intercepted by several trucks with gunmen.The women in the vehicle were released while the men were taken away, the official said.The abduction occurred on the highway between Ocozocoautla and Tuxtla Gutiérrez.Violence in the Mexican border region with Guatemala has escalated in recent months amid a territorial dispute between the Sinaloa Cartel – which has dominated the area – and the Jalisco New G...

Florida issues health advisory after 4 locally contract malaria in first spread in US in 20 years

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 19:11:59 GMT

TERRA CEIA ISLAND, Fla. (AP) — The Florida Department of Health has issued a statewide mosquito-borne illness advisory after four locally contracted cases of malaria were reported along the Gulf Coast south of Tampa.On Monday, a health alert issued by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention also noted that another case has been detected in Texas, marking the first time there has been a local spread of malaria in the United States in 20 years.The four residents in Sarasota County received treatment and have recovered, according to the state’s Department of Health advisory. Malaria, caused by a parasite that spreads through bites from Anopheles mosquitoes, causes fever, chills, sweats, nausea and vomiting, and headaches. It is not spread person to person.It’s the threat of the mosquito-borne illness that concerns Kathleen Gibson-Dee, who lives on Terra Ceia Island, which is about 20 miles (32 kilometers) north of Sarasota County. Even though no malaria cases have be...

Sisters tell Australia court that abuse by Jewish school principal broke trust, painful to remember

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 19:11:59 GMT

CANBERRA, Australia (AP) — Two sisters told an Australian court Wednesday that being sexually abused by their Jewish school’s principal broke their ability to trust forever and was painful to remember. Malka Leifer was convicted of rape and other crimes in the Victoria state County Court in April after years of fighting her extradition from Israel. She watched intently on a video link from prison but didn’t visibly react as the two sisters read victim impact statements at her sentencing hearing. Dassi Erlich, 35, was positioned in the courtroom specifically so she and Leifer could see other as she spoke about the impact of the abuse, as both Erlich and Leifer had requested.Erlich said she was 16 when Leifer told her: “I love you like a mother.”“I trusted her completely,” Erlich said.“The insidious nature of her sexual abuse has fractured my ability to trust forever,” Erlich added.Elly Sapper, 34, later told the court she had questioned whether she wanted to relive the trauma t...

Napheesa Collier’s 33 points, Diamond Miller’s energetic return spark Lynx to 104-93 win over Storm

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 19:11:59 GMT

Diamond Miller provided an energetic lift for the Minnesota Lynx. Napheesa Collier was her usual calm, dominant self.Collier scored 24 of a career-high 33 points in the second half and had 10 rebounds, and Miller made up for missing eight games with a contagious liveliness that permeated the Lynx lineup in a 104-93 win over Seattle Tuesday at Target Center.Winners in four of its past six, Minnesota set season highs in points and field-goal percentage (53.2%) while committing a season-low eight turnovers.Collier scored 12 of Minnesota’s first 14 points in the final quarter as the Lynx (5-9) opened up a 15-point lead. Collier netted points in seemingly every way possible during the game to top 20 points for the sixth time in seven games.“I worked really hard in the offseason to come back and be better than when I left the game in 2021,” said Collier, who missed most of 2022 after giving birth. “You work on things so hard you want to be able to use them in the game. Sometimes it’...

Daycare director accused of exposing children to meth asks for mercy

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 19:11:59 GMT

MANCHESTER, Mo. - Kidsplay Child Care in Manchester was suddenly a police scene on June 16 when investigators reported finding methamphetamine in the director’s purse and in an infant room.The center said that the director was fired on the spot and that it was a childcare employee who called the police, along with a childcare licensing inspector who happened to be on-site during the discovery.A Manchester police officer wrote in a charging document, “Defendant is director of daycare and has drugs on her. She admitted being on meth and carrying meth. Open bag of meth found on floor in baby’s room.” Expired tags ‘nightmare’: Woman gets car back as neighbor’s truck gets towed away “What if that child would have gotten ahold of that?” Randi Briggs, a mom, said.She said she did not have children at the facility but said she once had to pull her child from a questionable center.“It’s sickening, the world that we’re in. You put trust and faith in somebody to care for your child," Biggs s...

Heat and dry conditions pose double threat for St. Louis area firefighters  

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 19:11:59 GMT

EUREKA, Mo. - The Eureka Fire Protection District was able to contain a brush fire Monday night near the Tyson Research Center. The cause of the fire is unknown, but Deputy Chief William Stamberger said it doesn’t take much for a fire to start in the St. Louis area right now.Even if there is green grass in sight, he said leaf litter and underbrush can be fuel for a fire that leaves behind significant damage.Concerns are heightened with the approaching Fourth of July fireworks. An errant firework can easily trigger a fire that could spread quickly. The potential for triple-digit heat this week is another concern for firefighters. Expired tags ‘nightmare’: Woman gets car back as neighbor’s truck gets towed away “You’re talking about temperatures inside of your gear plus 100, 110, 120 degrees,” Stamberger said. “So, inside your gear, it can be extremely hot.”The St. Louis First Responder Canteen is an all-volunteer organization that supports first responders by providing snacks and d...