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I’m not racist, Italian agri minister says after white nationalist remarks

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:11:12 GMT

Italian Agriculture Minister Francesco Lollobrigida on Thursday denied he was a racist as controversy grew over comments he made about “ethnic substitution” — stressing that he respects “ethnic” food and music. Asked if he was aware that his remarks echoed racist rhetoric used in fascist Italy in the early 20th century, the minister said in an interview with Corriere della Sera: “Defining Italians by skin color is a mistake, and anyone who does not understand the difference between ethnicity and race is a fool.”“I respect music or ethnic dishes regardless of the skin color of the person playing or cooking,” he added.Lollobrigida, who is a member of Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s far-right Brothers of Italy party, sparked a national controversy over comments he made Tuesday in a speech at a trade union conference.Referring to Italy’s population decline, Lollobrigida — who is also Meloni’s brother-in-law — said: “...

‘Frustrating’: Ukraine slams EU for failing to deliver on ammo plan

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:11:12 GMT

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba slammed the EU on Thursday for failing to “implement its own decision” to jointly purchase ammunition for Ukraine as the bloc’s members spar over how to enact the plans.“The inability of the EU to implement its own decision on the joint procurement of ammunition for Ukraine is frustrating,” Kuleba said on Twitter, marking a considerable change in tone from Kyiv toward the club it hopes to join.EU leaders agreed last month on the idea to band together and draw money from a communal pot to help deliver Kyiv up to 1 million shells in the next 12 months as Ukraine fights off Russia’s invasion. But negotiations have hit an impasse at the ambassador level over how to spend the €1 billion set aside for joint contracts.Kuleba said this was a test of the EU’s ability to make crucial new security decisions and whether the bloc truly has “strategic autonomy” — echoing the favorite term used by French...

Man charged with driving drunk over crash at Norfolk gas station

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:11:12 GMT

A man is being charged with driving drunk after a box truck ended up dangling over the edge of a wall at a gas station in Norfolk after a crash Wednesday afternoon, according to police. Police say Keith Johnson, 54, of East Greenwich, RI is facing charges including operating under the influence of liquor, failure to wear a seatbelt, marked lanes violation, and negligent operation of a motor vehicle. The crash happened around 1:45 p.m. at Daley Service Center on Rockwood Road, local police and fire officials said in a joint statement. An initial investigation indicated that the box truck struck a traffic island before entering Daley’s Service Center, striking a gas pump, and then striking two motor vehicles andan aerial lift, police say. The box truck crashed through a fence before coming to a stop with two front tires dangling over a wall. A crane was in place and the truck had been pulled away from the wall moments later. The scene was taped off. Debris were also vi...

Worcester police report city’s first homicide of 2023 after April 9 shooting victim dies of injuries

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:11:12 GMT

A 24-year-old Worcester resident wounded in a shooting has died of his injuries, marking the city’s first homicide of the year, according to officials.The Worcester Police Department confirmed Thursday morning that the male victim had died nearly a week-and-a-half after the April 9 shooting on Dorchester Street.Officials previously said an arrest had been made in connection with the incident, with Izaiha Quintal, 20, arrested at a hospital soon afterwards.The police department stated Quintal was charged with:Armed Assault with Intent to MurderPossession of a Firearm without a LicensePossession of Ammunition without an FID CardDischarging a Firearm within 500 Feet of a DwellingMisleading a Police InvestigationHis arrest came after officers responded to a ShotSpotter activation in the area of Dorchester Street around 1:30 a.m. on Sunday, April 9, discovering the victim in a white Infiniti at the intersection of Barclay and Dorchester streets.Authorities have not yet identified t...

Developers have right to finish $1B power line, jury says

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:11:12 GMT

By DAVID SHARP (Associated Press)PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — A jury that heard complicated testimony about construction schedules and constitutional rights delivered a victory Thursday for a $1 billion transmission project, concluding developers had a constitutional right to proceed despite being rebuked by state voters in a referendum.Jurors ruled 9-0 in favor of developers when asked to decide whether enough work was completed in good faith before the referendum for developers to have a vested right to complete the project.Based on the outcome, a state judge is expected to conclude that the referendum was unconstitutional.The decision will be appealed to the state Supreme Judicial Court for the final say.At stake is a project touted as a bold effort to combat climate change by supplying up to 1,200 megawatts of Canadian hydropower to the New England power grid — enough electricity for about 1 million homes.Supporters say electricity supplied by the 145-mile (233-kilometer) ...

Connector, ramp closures scheduled on I-5 for pavement repairs

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:11:12 GMT

SAN DIEGO -- A ramp and connector closure on Interstate 5 is scheduled for Thursday night, according to Caltrans.The southbound I-5 to eastbound State Route 94 connector will close from 9 p.m. to 5 a.m. as maintenance crews work on a pavement rehabilitation project, officials said. Rules of the Road: California license plate rules During that same timeframe, the southbound I-5 E Street/16th Street on-ramp will be also be closed for road work.Caltrans has directed motorists to continue southbound on I-5 towards the 27th Street/National Avenue exit and head eastbound on National Avenue towards the northbound I-5 on-ramp.From their, transportation officials say motorists should continue northbound on I-5 towards the 19th Street off-ramp and continue northbound on 19th Street towards the eastbound SR-94 on-ramp. For real-time traffic information, including traffic speed, lane and road closures due to construction and maintenance activities, Caltrans has advised mot...

US military prepares for possible Sudan embassy evacuation

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:11:12 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Pentagon is moving additional troops and equipment to a Naval base in the tiny Gulf of Aden nation of Djibouti to prepare for the possible evacuation of U.S. Embassy personnel from Sudan.Two Biden administration officials say the deployments to Camp Lemmonier in Djibouti are necessary because of the current uncertain situation in Sudan, where fighting is raging between two warring factions.The officials spoke on condition of anonymity to describe the administration’s planning for a potential evacuation. That planning got underway in earnest on Monday after a U.S. Embassy convoy was attacked in Khartoum, the Sudanese capital.In a statement Thursday, the Pentagon said it will deploy “additional capabilities” to the region to potentially help facilitate an evacuation of embassy personnel from Sudan if required, but provided no details, and did not state the location.Security conditions in Khartoum and elsewhere have thus far prevented the State Department from imp...

Neighbor: Girl, 6, and parents shot, wounded over stray ball

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:11:12 GMT

GASTONIA, N.C. (AP) — A North Carolina man shot and wounded a 6-year-old girl and her parents after children went to retrieve a basketball that had rolled into his yard, according to neighbors and the girl’s family — another in a string of recent shootings sparked by seemingly trivial circumstances.Gaston County Police Chief Stephen Zill said at a news conference Wednesday that his department and the U.S. Marshals Service’s Regional Fugitive Task Force were conducting a broad search for 24-year-old Robert Louis Singletary, who fled after the Tuesday night shootings near Gastonia, a city of roughly 80,000 people west of Charlotte. Singletary, who has been out on bond in an December attack in which authorities say he assaulted a woman with a hammer, is wanted in Tuesday’s shootings on four counts of attempted first-degree murder, two counts of assault with a deadly weapon with the intent to kill inflicting serious injury, and one count of being a felon in possession ...

Mexican airliner suffers engine failure, safely lands

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:11:12 GMT

MEXICO CITY (AP) — The Mexican airline Viva Aerobus said one of its planes suffered an engine failure while covering a domestic route, but that the craft landed safely. The twin engine Airbus A320 was flying from the western city of Guadalajara to the Pacific coast resort of Puerto Vallarta when the mishap occurred Wednesday afternoon, the company said. The plane returned to Puerto Vallarta and landed safely. Video posted on social media shows flames shooting out of the engine while in the air. The company said “the aircraft was under control at all times and the welfare of all those on board was preserved.”On Tuesday, two airplanes were involved in a mishap on a taxiway at Mexico City’s international airport. One of the planes’ wingtip hit the horizontal stabilizer of the other aircraft. No injuries were reported.The Associated Press

Amazon seeks first incentive funds from Virginia HQ2 project

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:11:12 GMT

FALLS CHURCH, Va. (AP) — Amazon is asking Virginia for nearly $153 million in state incentive payments, which would be the first tranche of funds to be paid out since the tech giant agreed in 2018 to build a headquarters complex in the state.The application comes even as Amazon has paused work on what will be the centerpiece of its corporate campus — its Pen Place development project, which will feature a 350-foot, helix-shaped tower.The grant application — submitted by Amazon on March 31 and released Wednesday by Virginia economic development officials — seeks $152.7 million. That’s in line with the incentive deal Virginia used to lure Amazon to build a second headquarters to complement its original Seattle location.Under the deal, Amazon is expected to bring 25,000 jobs to Arlington County, Virginia — across the Potomac River from the nation’s capital — by 2038. Amazon receives a $22,000 grant for each job.In its application, Amazon said it has created 6,939 jobs that ...