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Prince George’s Co. Council debates after members reject virtual voting: ‘It is very clearly personal’

Published Thu, 26 Dec 2024 16:21:34 GMT

The pandemic has brought about lots of changes in the ways we live and work, with more and more jobs allowing for remote work than before. In some cases, employers can find it hard to attract talent by having a rigid “no virtual work” policy.That’s not the case in electoral politics. And with the declared pandemic emergency officially over, there’s no virtual work — at least, official work — that can be done by the Prince George’s County Council.Attendance at council and committee meetings must be in-person, as do all recorded votes. An effort to change that policy failed on a 5-5 vote as the full council met in what’s known as the Committee of the Whole. Even though the sixth vote, Council member Jolene Ivey, was out sick, the measure would have needed eight of 11 votes to ultimately pass in the future.While a couple of Council members who supported the change brought up COVID-19 and the impact it could have if one of their colleagues had to quarantine, it became pretty obvio...

Kaja Kallas blasts ‘witch hunt’ probe into husband’s Russia business ties

Published Thu, 26 Dec 2024 16:21:34 GMT

Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas on Wednesday blamed the opposition for orchestrating an attack over her husband’s business ties to Russia.“This is a witch-hunt by the opposition,” Kallas told the Guardian. “It is an excuse to waste time in parliament and obstruct our progressive agenda.”Kallas, who emerged as one of Ukraine’s staunchest supporters in the European Union, has been under fire since Estonian media revealed in August that her husband, Arvo Hallik, owned a stake in a logistics company that continued doing business in Russia even after Moscow’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine began.The prime minister — who won reelection in March and is now at the helm of a new coalition composed of her center-right Estonian Reform Party, the centrist Estonia 200 Party and the Social Democratic Party — has denied prior knowledge of her husband’s company’s link to Russia, and refuses to resign. But Kallas is still facing pressure from...

Return of ‘John Means Day’ offers reminder of how far Orioles have come | ANALYSIS

Published Thu, 26 Dec 2024 16:21:34 GMT

During the Orioles’ rebuild, “John Means Day” came to be in recognition of the only games where fans actually felt Baltimore could win. Tuesday night, the first such celebration in almost 17 months, instead offered an occasion to recognize how much has changed in that time.In his first start since April 13, 2022, Means — the 30-year-old left-hander who was comfortably the Orioles’ top starter during their lean seasons — allowed three runs over five innings in his long-awaited return from Tommy John elbow reconstruction. Although the performance came in a series-tying loss to the St. Louis Cardinals, such outcomes have become uncommon for Baltimore, rather than expected.“I don’t really believe in moral victories, to be honest with you,” Means said after his outing. “I wanted to get the win today. … But it is fun to play for a winning club and be in this clubhouse and be a part of this team.”Last season, having ma...

Despite opposition, Britain passes law to curb prosecutions for Northern Ireland ‘Troubles’ violence

Published Thu, 26 Dec 2024 16:21:34 GMT

LONDON (AP) — Not a lot unites Northern Ireland’s fractious political and religious groups. The British government has managed it with a law that sets out to lay the ghosts of decades of violence to rest.All of Northern Ireland’s major political parties, Catholic and Protestant churches, human rights organizations and the United Nations opposed the Legacy and Reconciliation Bill, which passed its final hurdle in Parliament late Tuesday.The legislation will stop most prosecutions for killings by militant groups and British soldiers during “the Troubles,” three decades of violence in which more than 3,500 people died.The 1998 Good Friday peace accord largely ended the killings. But a quarter century on, the wounds are still raw for those who lost loved ones at the hands of Irish republican and British loyalist militias and U.K. troops. Many say the new law will allow killers to get away with murder.Kenny Donaldson, director of services at the South East Fermanagh Foundation, a v...

Firefighters battle peatland fires on Indonesia’s Sumatra island

Published Thu, 26 Dec 2024 16:21:34 GMT

PALEMBANG, Indonesia (AP) — Firefighters in Indonesia were battling several peatland fires in several locations on Sumatra island on Wednesday, officials said.The fires started Tuesday afternoon near residential areas and along a highway in three villages. The firefighters were hampered because water sources were far away and several reservoirs were dry.Forest and peat fires are an annual problem in Indonesia that strains relations with neighboring countries. Smoke from the fires has blanketed parts of Indonesia, Singapore, Malaysia and southern Thailand with a noxious haze.Suharyanto, head of the National Disaster Management Agency, said the current fires in South Sumatra province would not affect neighboring countries.“I’m sure that in general everything is under control. Even though there is smoke now, I’m sure it’s not as big as what happened in previous years,” said Suharyanto, who like many Indonesians uses only one name. “There has been land that has been burned, but a lot of...

North Korea’s Kim vows full support for Russia’s ‘just fight’ after viewing launchpads with Putin

Published Thu, 26 Dec 2024 16:21:34 GMT

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — North Korean leader Kim Jong Un vowed support for Russia’s “just fight” during a summit with President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday that the U.S. warned could lead to a deal to supply ammunition for Moscow’s war in Ukraine.After touring launch pads with Putin at a remote space base in Russia’s Far East, Kim expressed “full and unconditional support” and said Pyongyang will always stand with Moscow on the “anti-imperialist” front.The leaders met at the Vostochny Cosmodrome for a summit that underscores how their interests are aligning in the face of their countries’ separate, intensifying confrontations with the United States. The talks lasted four to five hours, after which Kim left, Russia’s state news agency RIA Novosti reported.North Korea may have tens of millions of aging artillery shells and rockets based on Soviet designs that could give a huge boost to the Russian army in Ukraine, analysts say. The decision to meet at Cosmodrome, Russia’s...

Auto workers strike would test Biden’s assertion he’s the ‘most pro-union president in US history’

Published Thu, 26 Dec 2024 16:21:34 GMT

LANSING, Mich. (AP) — The prospect of an auto workers strike could test Joe Biden’s treasured assertion that he’s the most pro-union president in U.S. history. The United Auto Workers is threatening to strike against the nation’s big three automakers, General Motors, Ford and Stellantis, if tentative contact agreements aren’t reached by 11:59 p.m. on Thursday. That could reshape the political landscape in the battleground state of Michigan and potentially unleash economic shockwaves nationwide. The auto industry accounts for about 3% of the nation’s gross domestic product and as many as 146,000 workers may walk off their jobs. While the effects would be most immediate in Michigan and other states with high concentrations of auto jobs, such as Ohio and Indiana, a prolonged strike could trigger car shortages and layoffs in auto-supply industries and other sectors. “Anything that goes beyond a week, you’re going to start feeling the pain,” said Marick Mast...

Live updates: North Korean leader offers his country’s support to Russia amid its war in Ukraine

Published Thu, 26 Dec 2024 16:21:34 GMT

Follow the latest updates on the meeting between North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and Russian President Vladimir Putin at a cosmodrome in Russia’s Far East on Wednesday.WHAT TO KNOW:— North Korean leader Kim Jong Un traveled to Russia and met with Russian President Vladimir Putin. The visit marks a growing alignment of the isolated leaders of the nuclear-armed states.— The leaders are trying to deepen their relationship as each one is locked in confrontation with the United States. — Kim traveled to Russia in a special armored train, following a tradition begun by his predecessors.___South Korea says that North Korea fired two ballistic missiles into the sea off its east coast as leader Kim Jong Un was in Russia for meetings with Russian President Vladimir Putin.South Korea’s Unification Ministry, which handles inter-Korean affairs, said it was the first time the North launched a missile while Kim was on a rare trip overseas.South Korea’s Foreign Ministry said its nuclear envoy, Kim ...

The Italian island of Lampedusa sees 5,000 migrants arriving in 100-plus boats in a single day

Published Thu, 26 Dec 2024 16:21:34 GMT

ROME (AP) — The Italian Red Cross sounded the alarm Wednesday about humanitarian conditions on the Sicilian island of Lampedusa after more than 5,000 people in more than 100 different migrant boats arrived in one day with smugglers in north Africa taking advantage of calm seas to set off. At least one baby died near shore as a boat capsized, state radio said.Dozens of new arrivals crouched on the rocky jetties of Lampedusa’s port, while others sheltered in the shade of a nearby camping ground as the island’s lone migrant welcome center, which has a capacity of around 400, overflowed with more than 6,000 people.“Days ago there were more than 4,000 people and we were talking about a record, today we are talking about a record of landings,” the Red Cross’ national director Rosario Valastro said in a social media post. The issue isn’t a competition about records, he said, but about finding solutions to an emergency.The Red Cross urged the Italian government to quickly transf...

Rescuers recover over 2,000 bodies after floods devastate eastern Libya and displace 30,000 people

Published Thu, 26 Dec 2024 16:21:34 GMT

DERNA, Libya (AP) — Rescuers have found more than 2,000 bodies as of Wednesday in the wreckage of a Libyan city where floodwaters broke dams and washed away neighborhoods. Officials fear the death toll could exceed 5,000 in the nation made vulnerable by years of turmoil and neglect.The flooding caused significant infrastructure damage in the coastal city of Derna and displaced at least 30,000 people, the U.N. migration agency said. The damage is so extensive the city is almost inaccessible for humanitarian aid workers, the International Organization for Migration said.Mediterranean storm Daniel caused deadly flooding in many eastern towns, but the worst-hit was Derna. As the storm pounded the coast Sunday night, Derna residents said they heard loud explosions when the dams outside the city collapsed. Floodwaters washed down Wadi Derna, a river running from the mountains through the city and into the sea.More than 2,000 corpses were collected as of Wednesday morning and over half of ...