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The West may have to learn how to live with Erdoğan

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:46:20 GMT

Nathalie Tocci is director of the Istituto Affari Internazionali, Europe’s futures fellow at IWM, Vienna and a part-time professor at the European University Institute. Her latest book, “A Green and Global Europe,” is out with Polity.An 89 percent voter turnout in a close to 90 million-strong country is an electoral outcome that puts most liberal democracies to shame.Turkey, of course, is not a liberal democracy. Violations of human rights and fundamental freedoms, an eroded rule of law and a destroyed separation of powers leave no room for doubt.Yet, paradoxically, this is precisely what makes Turkey’s first electoral round so remarkable: In a political system where rights and checks and balances have been quashed, elections cannot be fair. Notwithstanding, no candidate got an absolute majority, leading Turkey into a second round of voting on May 28.But one can hardly imagine a second round of elections in Vladimir Putin’s Russia, Xi Jinping’s China or Abdel Fattah el-Sisi’s Egypt....

How do you do, fellow kids? Greek politicians court TikTok generation

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:46:20 GMT

ATHENS — The pissed-off youth have become the focus ahead of Greece’s national election.As the country gets ready to go to the polls on Sunday, May 21, politicians from across the spectrum are racing to learn the language of Gen Z. The (mostly) middle-aged men in suits of Greek politics have been posting on TikTok, agreeing to interviews with YouTubers, and even planning gifts for young people in a bid to secure their votes.That’s because more than 430,000 people, ranging in age from 16 to 21, will be eligible to cast ballots for the first time on Sunday. A key moment in the politicization of many in that demographic was a train crash in February in which 57 people died and which raised questions about the government’s competence. “It was not only the severity of the accident, but also the fact that most of the victims were young students and the youth could easily see themselves, their friends or brothers in their position,” said Angelos Seriatos, head of sci...

Staying human in a time of war

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:46:20 GMT

Yegor Firsov is a combat paramedic in Avdiivka, Ukraine. He is an activist and a former member of the Ukrainian parliament.AVDIIVKA — On the front lines, there is horror. But there is also great compassion.In the towns now being fought over in Ukraine, there are always a lot of abandoned animals — mostly dogs and cats. And although these animals have already been betrayed, left behind and deserted, they nevertheless seek human company — as well as food.Bakhmut is no exception.When we were stationed there, several stray dogs stuck around our headquarters. We fed them, of course, and as we did, a relationship started to develop: We gave them food and assigned them names, while they give us some reprieve.But when command decided to withdraw our unit from the area, as we packed up and our departure time approached, an unexpected question arose: What shall we do with the dogs?The battalion commander held a meeting on the fate of the pets, and we decided to find them homes. We called our ...

Sweden scrambles to project military strength ahead of NATO bid 

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:46:20 GMT

KORSÖ, SWEDEN — Inside the landing craft, the banter among the eight Swedish navy conscripts faded, replaced by a tense silence as they approached the Baltic Sea island of Korsö.To the sound of spent blank machine gun rounds rattling off the boat’s roof, the young soldiers charged through a narrow hatch onto the rocky shore shouting “forward” as instructors watched.The drill, in which they tried to seize the island from colleagues role-playing an occupying force, marked the end of the largest military training exercise held in Sweden since the end of the Cold War, testing Swedish forces and 14 allies across the mountains, flatlands and archipelagos of the Nordic nation. Stockholm was signaling to both allies and foes: the Swedish military is back.After decades of cuts, Sweden’s military is recruiting soldiers, opening bases and sourcing modern hardware as the region’s relationship with Russia freezes amid the Ukraine invasion. At a NATO summit in Lithuania this July,...

Justice Department watchdog finds Massachusetts US Attorney Rachael Rollins tried to influence DA election

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:46:20 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — The top federal prosecutor in Massachusetts tried to use her position to influence the outcome of a race for Boston’s district attorney by leaking information aimed at sabotaging the campaign of her preferred candidate’s rival, the Justice Department’s internal watchdog said in a report released Wednesday.A separate investigation by the U.S. Office of Special Counsel found multiple violations by U.S. Attorney Rachael Rollins of a law that limits political activity by government workers.—READ: The full 161-page Inspector General’s report “An Investigation of Alleged Misconduct by United States Attorney Rachael Rollins”—The findings were disclosed a day after Rollins’ lawyer told The Associated Press she would resign this week, saying she “understands that her presence has become a distraction.”The inspector general’s 161-page report alleges a broad array of misconduct by Rollins, who w...

Reyes helps power Red Sox to 12-3 win over Mariners

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:46:20 GMT

BOSTON (AP) — Pablo Reyes doubled twice for a career-high four RBIs to help the Boston Red Sox beat the Seattle Mariners 12-3 on Wednesday night.Justin Turner had a two-run homer, Rafael Devers and Kiké Hernández also each drove in two runs and right-hander Brayan Bello (3-1) won on his 24th birthday, allowing one run on three hits in five innings with five walks and seven strikeouts.Left-hander Marco Gonzalez (3-1) took the loss, lasting just 1 2/3 innings, He gave up eight runs on eight hits and two walks.The Red Sox took a 9-0 lead after two innings, sending eight batters to the plate in the first inning and 10 in the second.In the first, consecutive one-out singles by Turner, Rob Refsnyder and Devers scored a run, with Reyes’ two-out double adding two more.In the second, Turner’s two-run homer, his fifth homer of the season, scored Alex Verdugo to start the scoring. Refsnyder walked before consecutive two-out singles by Masataka Yoshida and Hernández and another two-...

Sisters make history during Peabody High School softball game

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:46:20 GMT

Three sisters on the Peabody High School softball team recently made history, with all three hitting a home run in the same game. Speaking with 7NEWS, the sister sluggers said they’re happy for eachother and want to keep the momentum up for the rest of their season. The Bettencourt sisters’ milestone came during a matchup with rival Bishop Fenwick earlier this month.Abby Bettencourt was the first to hit a home run in the game. “When it first happened, we were like, ‘Wait, did that actually happen?” she said. The oldest sister, Isabel, hit her home run shortly after Abby’s hit. “I was glad it happened during that game especially because we were facing a better pitcher and it was something to be excited about and it meant something during that game,” Isabel said. Then, it was time for the youngest, Lizzy. “Once we all hit it, everyone was like ‘Wait, they all hit it in the same game’ so it was pretty crazy,” Lizzy said. The sisters’ coach, Tawny...

Pete Alonso hits 3-run, walk-off homer to secure rollercoaster win against Rays in extra innings

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:46:20 GMT

The rookies put the Mets on their backs on Wednesday and slugger Pete Alonso landed the final blow to secure a 8-7 victory over the Tampa Bay Rays in extra innings.Buck Showalter saw his club’s offense get shutout until the seventh inning in Wednesday’s win. Francisco Alvarez and Mark Vientos provided some timely homers to pull the Mets from behind while Kodai Senga gave his team a solid start.All that was almost erased in the 10th after Tampa Bays’ Harold Ramirez scored a go-ahead RBI single to right and Josh Lowe’s single scored an insurance run.But Alonso’s 15th homer of the season in the bottom of the 10th was the cherry on top of a win the team desperately needed. The walk-off victory gives the Mets a chance to get its first series win since last month.Tampa Bay starter Josh Fleming threw five scoreless innings, allowing three hits, two walks and striking out five batters.The Mets didn’t get a run on the board until Vientos gave his team a sp...

Yankees lose pitching duel to Jays after Wandy Peralta gives up walk-off homer in 3-0 loss

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:46:20 GMT

TORONTO — The first two games between the Yankees and Blue Jays featured 20 runs and what felt like just as many extra-curricular incidents. But both teams mostly stayed quiet at the plate and in the dugout Wednesday while Gerrit Cole and Chris Bassitt dueled on the mound.The two sides had chances to score toward the end of regulation, but no one crossed the plate until the 10th frame, when Danny Jansen crushed a three-run, walk-off homer against Wandy Peralta to left field. Just like that, an offensively starved game became a 3-0 win for Toronto.Earlier, Bassitt stifled the Yankees for seven scoreless innings. The right-hander only let up three hits and one walk while striking out seven over 97 pitches.The Yankees, meanwhile, wasted a gritty performance from Cole, who faced trouble at the beginning and end of his start, though he came away unscathed in both scenarios.Toronto’s first two batters of the game reached on errors from shortstop Oswaldo Cabrera and Cole, but t...

Sox bats go big in Brayan Bello’s birthday game

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:46:20 GMT

After being outscored 23-5 between Saturday and Monday, the Red Sox fêted Brayan Bello’s 24th birthday with a barrage of runs in his Wednesday night start.By the final out of the night, they’d scored 12 runs on 16 hits to win the series. A resounding 12-3 victory is exactly the kind of momentum needed for their upcoming road trip, which begins Friday with a visit to Xander Bogaerts in San Diego.After Bello worked a 12-pitch, 1-2-3 first inning, the Red Sox took an early 1-0 lead on three consecutive 1-out singles.The newly-acquired Pablo Reyes was an early and often standout. Batting with the bases loaded in the first, he doubled to extend the lead to 3-0. He doubled again in the second, scoring another pair of runs.Reyes also made a couple of impressive plays to keep Seattle off the board, including a tremendous catch and relay to first baseman Justin Turner, who was able to make out No. 3, dashing the Mariners’ hopes of capitalizing on a bases-loaded situation.St...