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Report: Johnson deliberately misled Parliament over ‘partygate’

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:07:00 GMT

By Danica Kirka and Sylvia Hui | Associated PressLONDON — A committee of U.K. lawmakers harshly rebuked former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson Thursday, saying he lied to Parliament about lockdown-flouting parties and was complicit in a campaign to intimidate those investigating his conduct during the coronavirus pandemic.The House of Commons Privileges Committee found Johnson’s actions were such a flagrant violation of the rules that they warranted a 90-day suspension from Parliament, where he still served after stepping down as prime minister last year. The committee’s sanction would have been more than enough to trigger a by-election that could have cost Johnson his seat in Parliament, but he avoided that ignominy by resigning last week after the committee gave him advance notice of its findings.The release of the Commons committee’s scathing 77-page report Thursday touched off an angry exchange of recriminations. Johnson repeated his claim that the panel w...

MLB commissioner Manfred downplays ‘reverse boycott’, feels ‘sorry’ for A’s fans but looks ahead to likely Las Vegas move

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:07:00 GMT

Rob Manfred does not appear concerned about burning any more bridges with the East Bay.One day after the Nevada Legislature voted to offer the A’s $380 million in public funds for a Las Vegas stadium, the commissioner of Major League Baseball downplayed Tuesday’s fan-organized “reverse boycott” in protest of Manfred and team owner John Fisher working to move the team.“It was great,” Manfred said Thursday after the owners’ meetings in New York. “It’s great to see what is this year almost an average Major League Baseball crowd in the facility for one night. That’s a great thing.”The crowd at the Coliseum Tuesday night for the A’s 2-1 win over the Rays was 27,759. While the turnout and fervor drew positive reviews from many national observers, Manfred is correct on the numbers: That attendance figure would rank 17th among MLB teams so far this season. The A’s entered Thursday last in MLB with an average count...

Downtown SF AT&T store to close

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:07:00 GMT

SAN FRANCISCO (KRON) -- In more bad news for downtown San Francisco retail, the AT&T store located at 1 Powell Street will be closing this summer, KRON4 has learned. The store, which is located near the Powell Street Cable Car turnaround, is slated to close on Aug. 1.An AT&T spokesperson cited changing consumer shopping habits as the reason for the closure. No mention was made of shoplifting or conditions on the street in the surrounding neighborhood. Cinemark and Westfield abandoning downtown SF just the latest in string of bad news Employees at the store will be offered jobs at other retail locations in San Francisco, the spokesperson said.Here is the complete statement they provided:"Consumer shopping habits continue to change, and we’re changing with them. That means serving customers where they are through the right mix of retail stores, digital channels and our phone-based care team. We are proud of our continued presence in the community, not only through our retail...

Woman stabbed to death in Antioch

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:07:00 GMT

(KRON) -- A 30-year-old woman was stabbed to death early Thursday morning in Antioch. Antioch Police Department officers were called to the 2200 block of San Jose Drive just after 5 a.m. Officers said they found the woman and a 39-year-old man suffering from stab wounds. The woman was pronounced dead at the scene, and the man was rushed to a hospital with life-threatening injuries. Antioch PD officer fired for using unreasonable force Police did not release further details about the homicide. Lt. Rick Martin stated, "This is an isolated incident and there is no current threat to the public. No further information will be released at this time."

Guardsman indicted on charges of disclosing classified national defense information

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:07:00 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Massachusetts Air National Guardsman accused of leaking highly classified military documents has been indicted on federal felony charges, the Justice Department said Thursday.Jack Teixeira faces six counts in the indictment of willful retention and transmission of national defense information. He was arrested in April on charges of sharing highly classified military documents about Russia’s war in Ukraine and other top national security issues in a chat room on Discord, a social media platform that started as a hangout for gamers. The stunning breach exposed to the world unvarnished secret assessments of Russia’s war in Ukraine, the capabilities and geopolitical interests of other nations and other national security issues.A judge last month ordered him to remain jailed as he awaits trial, saying that releasing Teixeira would pose a risk that he would attempt to flee the country or obstruct justice.His family has expressed support for him, and his lawyers had p...

El Niño, not avian flu, caused the deaths of hundreds of birds in Mexico, government says

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:07:00 GMT

MEXICO CITY (AP) — When hundreds of birds were found dead along Mexico’s Pacific coast earlier this year, experts immediately suspected avian flu.But the government said Thursday that the warming Pacific ocean currents associated with El Niño, not bird flu, were responsible for the mass die-off.Mexico’s Agriculture Department said Thursday that tests on the dead birds revealed they had died of starvation, not flu. The department said that warming surface water in the Pacific caused by El Niño can drive fish into deeper, cooler water, making it harder for birds to find food. Most of the dead birds were Sooty Shearwaters, seagulls and pelicans. They died in states ranging from Chiapas, on the border with Guatemala, all the way north and west to Baja California.“According to autopsies carried out be veterinarians and specialized biologists, it was found that the animals died of starvation,” the department said. “The most probable cause of this epidemiological event is the warming...

Kosovo tightens security at border with Serbia in row over detained police officers

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:07:00 GMT

PRISTINA, Kosovo (AP) — Kosovo said Thursday it would tighten security at the border with Serbia as the two states traded accusations of sending armed men into each other’s territory and disputed the details of Serbia’s seizure of three Kosovo policemen.The dispute adds to tensions between the sides that have flared into violent clashes over the past couple of months and which have stirred fears of a renewal of the 1998-99 conflict in Kosovo that claimed more than 10,000 lives, mostly ethnic Albanians.Kosovo’s Prime Minister Albin Kurti called Wednesday’s seizure a kidnapping and said it took place inside Kosovo. He said he would tighten border security, and criticized NATO-led international peacekeepers, known as KFOR, for failing to take a position on the incident.KFOR is in charge of monitoring Kosovo’s border crossings in the north. Speaking at a news conference, Kurti showed maps of where the incident allegedly occurred, saying that Serbia’s special police and army units had en...

Ex-NYC Mayor de Blasio ordered to pay $475K for misusing public funds on failed White House bid

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:07:00 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — Former New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio was ordered Thursday to pay $475,000 by a city ethics board that found he misused public funds on a police security detail during his failed presidential bid.The hefty fine is the largest ever handed out by New York’s Conflicts of Interest Board, capping off a yearslong investigation into the two-term mayor’s use of taxpayer dollars to cover the travel costs of NYPD officers who accompanied him on cross-country campaign stops.Under the ruling, which he has vowed to appeal, de Blasio, a Democrat, will be forced to reimburse the city for $320,000 spent on the officers’ flights, hotels, meals and rental cars during the four-month campaign. He will also have to pay a fine of $25,000 for each of the security detail’s 31 out-of-state trips, amounting to $155,000.The order was handed down by the Conflicts of Interest Board Chair, Milton Williams, who found that de Blasio “plainly violated” the city’s prohibition on using public reso...

Manfred thinks sticky stuff use beyond 3 ejected pitchers

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:07:00 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred thinks the use of banned sticky stuff is more widespread than the three pitchers ejected this season for illegal grip aids.“I am sure that out of an abundance of caution and good judgment, umpires have had questionable situations that they decided: just not quite sure,” Manfred said Thursday following an owners meeting. “And I am 100% certain they err on the side of no violation.”New York Mets pitcher Drew Smith was suspended for 10 games Wednesday, a day after he was ejected. That followed similar bans for Mets teammate Max Scherzer on April 20 and Yankees pitcher Domingo Germán on May 17.“We talk to the umpires after each situation like that. I think it is fair to say across the board the violation situations were in the unquestionable zone,” Manfred said. “It was absolutely clear that the level of stickiness in each situation could not be have been produced by the allowable use of a rosin bag,”Five pitchers have been suspend...

Substitute Joselu scores late winner as Spain beats Italy 2-1, advances to Nations League final

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:07:00 GMT

ENSCHEDE, Netherlands (AP) — Substitute Joselu scored an 88th-minute winner and Spain beat Italy 2-1 on Thursday at FC Twente Stadium to set up a meeting with Croatia in the Nations League final on Sunday.The Espanyol striker was just onside as he turned in a deflected shot by Rodri four minutes after replacing Alvaro Morata to prevent the second Nations League semifinal from going to extra time.It is a second chance for Spain, which reached the Nations League final in 2021 — beating Italy in the semifinals — but lost to France.Spain had opened the scoring in the third minute when veteran Italy captain Leonardo Bonucci was tackled by Gavi and dispossessed by Yeremy Pino, who then calmly fired past Gianluigi Donnarumma for his second international goal.But Ciro Immobile hit back quickly for Italy, converting an 11th-minute penalty after Nicolo Zaniolo hit a powerful shot that hit the arm of France-born Real Sociedad defender Robin Le Normand, who was making his debut for La Roja.Spai...