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UN official says world body committed to Cyprus peace deal

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:03:25 GMT

NICOSIA, Cyprus (AP) — The United Nations remains committed to helping rival Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots reach an agreement remedying the island nation’s ethnic cleave that has been the source of instability in the east Mediterranean for decades, a senior U.N. official said Wednesday.U.N. Under-Secretary-General for Political and Peacebuilding Affairs Rosemary DiCarlo said that she reiterated to new Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides the “commitment of the Secretary-General to supporting a resolution on the Cyprus issue.” She is scheduled to speak with Turkish Cypriot leader Ersin Tatar later in the day as well as addressing peace activists in the U.N. controlled buffer zone that divides the capital Nicosia.The U.N. has been facilitating numerous failed rounds of talks between the two sides since 1974 when a Turkish invasion triggered by a coup aimed at a union with Greece split the island into a breakaway Turkish Cypriot north and a Greek Cypriot south where the island...

Videos show scattered protests during Iran’s fire festival

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:03:25 GMT

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Iranians have held scattered anti-government protests during an annual fire festival with ancient roots, according to videos circulating online.The videos appeared to show protesters in different cities chanting against the country’s ruling clerics and hurling firecrackers at security forces during celebrations of Chaharshanbe Soori, which took place on Tuesday. Hard-liners have long condemned the festival, which dates back to 1700 B.C., as un-Islamic.Iran has seen waves of anti-government protests since September, when a 22-year-old woman, Mahsa Amini, died after being detained by the morality police for allegedly violating the Islamic Republic’s strict Islamic dress code. At their height, the protests saw thousands of people across the country calling for the overthrow of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.The protests have largely died down in over the past few months following a fierce security crackdown. More than 1...

Three-alarm fire in Queen Street West and Ryerson Avenue area

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:03:25 GMT

A three-alarm fire has broken out in the Queen Street West and Ryerson Avenue area.TFS crews are actively dealing with a 3-alarm residential fire on Queen St. W (W. of Augusta Ave). Thankfully, there are no reports of injuries at this time. ^dv #Toronto— Toronto Fire Services (@Toronto_Fire) March 15, 2023Toronto police responded to a call at approximately 6:25 a.m. about a fire at a residential building.The fire was originally reported as a two-alarm fire, but was later re-classified.No injuries have been reported, but Queen Street West is closed from Portland Street to Augusta Avenue.

Ontario plans to require women only bathrooms on large construction sites

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:03:25 GMT

Ontario’s labour minister is aiming to solve an excrement predicament.Monte McNaughton is set to announce Wednesday that he is proposing to amend rules about bathrooms on construction sites to make them cleaner, safer and provide some for women only.A Ministry of Labour bathroom inspection blitz last month at more than 1,800 construction sites found 244 violations, the most common being no toilets provided, a lack of privacy, or a lack of cleaning.“In what other industry would this be acceptable, right?” McNaughton said in an interview.“These are men and women, not livestock, and it’s important that they get the respect that they deserve. If we’re going to encourage men and women into the skilled trades, then we need to ensure that we have proper facilities for them to use.”McNaughton said he hears often from women in the skilled trades with stories about deplorable bathroom conditions. The labour minister set the stage for this announcement...

In nursing homes, impoverished live final days on pennies

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:03:25 GMT

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — New pants to replace Alex Morisey’s tattered khakis will have to wait. There’s no cash left for sugar-free cookies either. Even at the month’s start, the budget is so bare that Fixodent is a luxury. Now, halfway through it, things are so tight that even a Diet Pepsi is a stretch.“How many years do I have left?” asks 82-year-old Morisey, who lives in a Philadelphia nursing home. “I want to live those as well as I can. But to some degree, you lose your dignity.”Across the U.S., hundreds of thousands of nursing home residents are locked in a wretched bind: Driven into poverty, forced to hand over all income and left to live on an allowance as low as $30 a month.In a long-term care system that subjects some of society’s frailest to daily indignities, Medicaid’s personal needs allowance, as the stipend is called, is among the most ubiquitous, yet least known. Nearly two-thirds of American nursing home residents have their care paid for by Medicaid and, in exchange, al...

Blinken in Ethiopia as country recovers from Tigray conflict

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:03:25 GMT

NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is in Ethiopia to meet with Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed and others about the recovery from a devastating two-year conflict in the country’s Tigray region that killed hundreds of thousands of people.Blinken will address journalists later Wednesday about his visit that Ethiopia’s government said also includes discussions about a dispute with downstream Egypt over Ethiopia’s completion of Africa’s largest hydroelectric dam.Ethiopia’s government is eager to see the return of economic and other assistance from the U.S. and others, but there are concerns about how the government will address the widespread human rights abuses committed by all sides in the conflict. The government has objected to a United Nations commission of inquiry.“There’s a lot to be done,” Blinken told Foreign Minister Demeke Mekonnen. “But the most important thing is to keep the peace that has now taken hold in the north and to strengthen our ties as we move...

3 teens shot in separate shootings on South Side; 1 critical

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:03:25 GMT

CHICAGO — Three teenagers were shot in separate incidents on the city's South Side, one of them is in critical condition.According to police, a 16-year-old boy was shot and critically wounded around 9:30 p.m. Tuesday in the 9400 block of South Harvard. Police said the teen was inside a residence with another male when a physical altercation ensued and the offender produced a handgun and fired at the 16-year-old. The teen was shot in the chest and was transported to Christ Hospital in critical condition. Police said the offender is in custody, but no weapon was recovered. Area Two detectives are investigating the incident. Free-to-public training academy offers Chicagoans insight into COPA Two other teenagers were injured in another shooting on the South Side. Police said the boys were standing on the sidewalk in the 8000 block of South Vernon around 11:55 p.m. Tuesday, when someone inside a Chevy SUV fired shots.A 17-year-old boy was transported to Comers Children's Hospital in go...

Wednesday Forecast: Temps in low 50s with breezy and warm conditions

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:03:25 GMT

CHICAGO — Temperatures in the lower 50s Wednesday with increasing clouds. Breezy and warmer conditions. Winds: S 10-15 G25. High: 51. Interactive Radar: Track showers and storm here Cloudy tonight. Winds: S 10-15 G30. Low: 40.Thursday Forecast: Cloudy Thursday with afternoon and evening rain possible. Winds: S 10-15 G30. High: 49.Full forecast details at the WGN Weather Center

What are US troops still doing in Iraq 20 years later?

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:03:25 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — Twenty years after the U.S. invaded Iraq — in blinding explosions of shock and awe — American forces remain in the country in what has become a small but consistent presence to ensure an ongoing relationship with a key military and diplomatic partner in the Middle East.The roughly 2,500 U.S. troops are scattered around the country, largely in military installations in Baghdad and in the north. And while it is a far cry from the more than 170,000 U.S. forces in Iraq at the peak of the war in 2007, U.S. officials say the limited — but continued — troop level is critical as a show of commitment to the region and a hedge against Iranian influence and weapons trafficking.A look at America's evolving role in Iraq:HOW DID IT START?The U.S. invaded Iraq in March 2003 in what it called a massive “shock and awe” bombing campaign that lit up the skies, laid waste to large sections of the country and paved the way for American ground troops to converge on Baghdad. The invasion...

Red Lobster offering 'endless lobster' for 1 day only at Times Square location

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:03:25 GMT

(KTLA) -- Red Lobster is no stranger to unlimited food offerings. The restaurant chain regularly holds events for endless shrimp, and its world-famous Cheddar Bay Biscuits are unlimited to restaurant guests.But a new promotion taking place this month might be the restaurant's most ambitious.Red Lobster announced Tuesday that it would be offering endless lobster for one day only at one location. ‘Family Feud’ contestant accused of murdering estranged wife The endless lobster event will happen on March 28 at the Red Lobster located in Times Square in New York City. Those lucky enough to snag a reservation will get to enjoy unlimited live Maine lobster, entirely free of charge.Each 1.25-pound lobster comes with a side of butter, steamed broccoli and a choice of side.Red Lobster is hosting the first-ever Endless Lobster event for "lob-sessed" guests at its Times Square location on March 28, 2023 (Red Lobster)Reservations open to the public on March 21 for three available dining window...