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Police say about 100 people returning from wedding killed when boat capsizes in northern Nigeria

Published Thu, 26 Dec 2024 17:28:48 GMT

ABUJA, Nigeria (AP) — A boat carrying residents returning from a wedding capsized in northern Nigeria killing about 100 people, police and local residents said Tuesday, as a search for survivors intensified.The boat capsized early Monday on the Niger River in the state of Kwara close to neighboring Niger state, police spokesman Okasanmi Ajayi said. “What we gathered was there was a boat that capsized and about 100 people died,” he said. The victims, including women and children, were returning from an overnight wedding ceremony in the village of Egboti in Niger state, said Usman Ibrahim, a resident.It was not immediately clear if there were survivors.“People in the boat were to take their bikes to their various communities (upon disembarking). The boat was carrying more than 100 people when it sank,” said Ibrahim. Many of the victims drowned because the accident happened at about 3 a.m. and not many knew of it until hours later, he said. “Up till now, some dead bodies are still bein...

Justice minister says accusation that he intimidated Tory MP in email is ‘ridiculous’

Published Thu, 26 Dec 2024 17:28:48 GMT

OTTAWA — An accusation from Tory MP Frank Caputo that the Liberal attorney general tried to intimidate him with an email is “ridiculous,” Justice Minister David Lametti argued on Tuesday. Caputo, who is a lawyer, said during a point of privilege in the House of Commons Monday that Lametti had seemed to threaten his reputation in the legal community.In an email, the minister had said he would “let the community know” that he clapped in the House of Commons after fellow Conservative MP Michael Barrett questioned the impartiality of former Supreme Court justice Frank Iacobucci.Barrett’s comments came after ex-foreign interference watchdog David Johnston said he sought Iacobucci’s legal advice on whether he was in a conflict of interest because of former ties to the Pierre Elliott Trudeau Foundation, and said Iacobucci gave him clearance. Lametti told reporters Tuesday morning that it was the Italian-Canadian community he was referencing, not the lega...

North York school closed, students sent home after alleged bomb threat

Published Thu, 26 Dec 2024 17:28:48 GMT

Students have been sent home from a North York high school as police investigate an alleged bomb threat.Toronto police say Georges Vanier Secondary School received an online bomb threat just after 9:30 a.m. on Tuesday. The school is located in the area of Don Mills Road and Van Horne Avenue.The school was initially place in hold and secure but a Toronto police tweet, sent at 11:43 a.m., said the school had been closed and students were sent home.No injuries have been reported.Police continue to investigate.BOMB THREAT: (UPDATE)Georges Vanier Secondary School9:39am– school has been closed– student sent home – police continue to investigate#GO1351749^se— Toronto Police Operations (@TPSOperations) June 13, 2023

Monahan tells US lawmakers that PGA Tour was left on its own to fend off Saudis

Published Thu, 26 Dec 2024 17:28:48 GMT

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Commissioner Jay Monahan has told congressional members the PGA Tour was “left on our own” to fend off Saudi Arabia’s bid to take over the sport with LIV Golf because of the United States’ geopolitical alliance with the kingdom.Monahan sent the letter to various lawmakers on June 9, three days after the PGA Tour’s stunning announcement of an agreement with Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund and the European tour to pool commercial business and rights in a new company.The agreement, while still not finalized, would end all litigation between the PGA Tour and the Public Investment Fund. In the last year, LIV Golf had lured away some of golf’s biggest stars with signing bonuses of $100 million or more, prompting the PGA Tour to respond by pouring millions into its own tournament purses.“During this intense battle, we met with several Members of Congress and policy experts to discuss the PIF’s attempt to take over the game of golf in th...

Chief justice ‘not comfortable’ with lack of transparency over judicial complaints

Published Thu, 26 Dec 2024 17:28:48 GMT

OTTAWA — Canada’s chief justice says he has asked the national body that oversees the conduct of judges to consider making the process for dealing with complaints more transparent.At a news conference today, Richard Wagner says he is “not comfortable” with the current process because it is too opaque and insufficiently clear for the public.Russell Brown retired from the Supreme Court of Canada on Monday, ending a probe into allegations of misconduct.The Canadian Judicial Council said it no longer has jurisdiction to continue investigating allegations of misconduct stemming from an event at an Arizona hotel in January. Brown has vigorously denied accusations that he was intoxicated and harassed a group of friends at an event at an upscale resort in Scottsdale, Ariz. Brown, appointed to the Supreme Court eight years ago, had been on leave since Feb. 1, pending the outcome of the council’s review.This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 13, 202...

UN nuclear chief says large Ukraine atomic power plant held by Russia faces ‘dangerous situation’

Published Thu, 26 Dec 2024 17:28:48 GMT

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — The largest nuclear power plant in Europe faces “a relatively dangerous situation” after a dam burst in Ukraine and Kyiv launches a counteroffensive to retake ground occupied by Russia, the head of the United Nations nuclear watchdog said Tuesday. Rafael Moreno Grossi, the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency, spoke to journalists in Kyiv just before leaving on a trip to the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant. That plant has been repeatedly in the crossfire since Russia launched its war on Ukraine in February 2022 and seized the facility shortly after. Grossi said he had met Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to discuss the situation affecting the plant, which grew more serious after the Kakhovka Dam burst last week. The dam, further down the Dnieper River, helped keep water in a reservoir that cools the plant’s reactors. Ukraine has said Russia blew up the dam, something denied by Moscow, though analysts say the flood likely disrupted Kyiv...

3 people slain, 3 others struck by van in English city of Nottingham

Published Thu, 26 Dec 2024 17:28:48 GMT

LONDON (AP) — Three people were slain in the streets of the English city of Nottingham in early morning attacks Tuesday that culminated with the suspect mowing down three pedestrians with a van, leaving one in critical condition, police said.A 31-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of murder and police said they believe he acted alone. Nottinghamshire Police detectives were working with counterterrorism officers to try to establish a motive. “This is an horrific and tragic incident which has claimed the lives of three people,” Chief Constable Kate Meynell said.Two of the three people killed were students at the University of Nottingham.“We are shocked and devastated by the news,” the school said in an announcement.Students canceled the graduation ball that was scheduled Tuesday evening.Police did not disclose how the three people were killed but said the first attack occurred around dawn when two people were found dead on an inner-city road. A third body was later found on a diff...

Putin hints of new effort to gain territory in Ukraine after cross-border strikes

Published Thu, 26 Dec 2024 17:28:48 GMT

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Russian President Vladimir Putin suggested Tuesday that he could order Russian troops to try to carve out more land in Ukraine for a buffer zone, while asserting that Ukrainian forces had suffered “catastrophic” losses in a new counteroffensive.The Russian leader made some of his most detailed remarks in months about the war in an open meeting with military journalists and bloggers, just as Ukrainian officials claim they have captured a handful of villages in the early stages of a counter-offensive.It came after overnight Russian missile strikes in central Ukraine killed at least 11 people.Putin also said he wasn’t ruling out a new mobilization and reiterated Russia’s blame against Ukrainian forces for the destruction of a Dnieper River dam last week that caused vast flooding on both sides of the front line in southern Ukraine.Putin said that a Ukrainian counteroffensive has been unsuccessful and suffered losses that he called “catastrophic.” He asserted that Uk...

Are the Denver Nuggets' championship hats misspelled?

Published Thu, 26 Dec 2024 17:28:48 GMT

DENVER (KDVR) — For the first time ever, the Denver Nuggets are NBA champions. As the team raised the Larry O'Brien trophy up high, they were also awarded new hats. But those hats make them look more like "champians" than "champions."Multiple retailers across the state opened their doors early to fans looking to grab some merch to show off their Nuggets pride. One coveted item is the champions hat that the team wore right after they won. 11 people shot downtown after Denver Nuggets win NBA Finals However, there seems to be a difference between the one worn by the team and the one being sold on the NBA's website. Some fans have noticed that the hats given to the team don't do a very good job of differentiating the "o" and the "a," with the cursive font making it look as though the team was crowned "champians."Denver Nuggets owner Josh Kroenke, center right, hugs head coach Michael Malone after the team won the NBA Championship with a victory over the Miami Heat in Game 5 of basketb...

Student loan payments due in October after years-long pause

Published Thu, 26 Dec 2024 17:28:48 GMT

(The Hill) -- The Department of Education has locked in for student loan borrowers when payments will restart after the three-year pause from COVID-19.The department says on its website the interest for student loan payments will begin in September while payments will resume again in October. The update says the payments are restarting again since “Congress recently passed a law preventing further extensions of the payment pause."The break in federal payments began under then-President Donald Trump in early 2020.The law that prevented further extensions of it was included in the debt ceiling agreement between President Joe Biden and Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R).“We will notify borrowers well before payments restart,” the department said. The set date for restarting payment was first reported by Politico.  This school reopened quickly after COVID. Kids’ reading was still behind Meanwhile, Biden’s student debt relief plan is still at the mercy of the conservative-leaning S...