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Singapore hangs 2nd citizen in 3 weeks for trafficking cannabis despite calls to halt executions

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:48:01 GMT

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AP) — Singapore on Wednesday hanged another citizen for trafficking cannabis, the second in three weeks, as it clung firmly to the death penalty despite growing calls for the city-state to halt drug-related executions.The 37-year-old man was executed after his last-ditch bid to reopen his case was dismissed by the court Tuesday without a hearing, said activist Kokila Annamalai of the Transformative Justice Collective, which advocates for abolishing the death penalty in Singapore.The man, who was not named as his family has asked for privacy, had been imprisoned for seven years and convicted in 2019 for trafficking around 1.5 kilograms (3.3 pounds) of cannabis, she said. His bid to reopen his case was based on DNA evidence and fingerprints that tied him to a much smaller amount, which he admitted to possessing, but the court rejected it, she added. Under Singapore laws, trafficking more than 500 grams (1.1 pounds) of cannabis may result in the death penalty.“I...

Nepal’s Sherpa guide regains title for most climbs of Mount Everest after 27th trip

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:48:01 GMT

KATHMANDU, Nepal (AP) — One of the greatest mountain guides regained his title for the most climbs of Mount Everest after scaling the peak for the 27th time on Wednesday, just three days after a fellow Sherpa climber had equalled his previous record. Kami Rita, 53, reached the 8,849-meter (29,032-foot) summit guiding a group of climbers on the world’s highest mountain, and was safe and in good health, said Mingma Sherpa of the Kathmandu-based Seven Summit Treks.A fellow Nepali Sherpa guide Pasang Dawa scaled the peak on Sunday for the 26th time, equalling Kami Rita’s record last year. The season’s first wave of climbers reached the summit over the weekend as Sherpa guides fixed ropes and made paths for the hundreds who will attempt to scale the peak over the remaining days of May. May is the best month to climb Everest since it has the best weather conditions. There are generally only a couple of windows with good weather on the highest section of the mountain in May tha...

ESPN announces ‘Pat McAfee Show’ will join afternoon lineup

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:48:01 GMT

Pat McAfee’s show is moving to ESPN as part of a new multiyear deal announced Tuesday.McAfee first joined ESPN as a college football analyst for its Thursday night games in 2019. He returned to the network last year and became part of the “College GameDay” crew as well as hosting some alternate presentations of ESPN games, including the CFP National Championship.That will continue, but it is McAfee’s show that has created the most buzz. It began on satellite radio in 2016 and picked up steam when it began streaming in 2019. The show has been mainly on YouTube the past three years, but will move to ESPN, the ESPN YouTube Channel and ESPN+ as part of the network’s afternoon lineup beginning in the fall. It will likely air after “First Take” and start at 12 p.m. ET.McAfee is exiting a four-year deal with FanDuel that the New York Post reported was worth $120 million.The McAfee show is known for weekly appearances by Aaron Rodgers during the football season, including ...

Perez has 2-run double in Kansas City’s 5-run 2nd, Royals beat Padres 5-4

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:48:01 GMT

SAN DIEGO (AP) — Salvador Perez hit a two-run double in Kansas City’s five-run second, Brady Singer pitched six solid innings and the Royals beat the San Diego Padres 5-4 on Tuesday night to snap a four-game losing streak.The Royals jumped on starter Seth Lugo (3-3) in the second, with Bobby Witt Jr., Nate Eaton and Matt Duffy also driving in runs. Lugo gave up five runs on four hits in his two innings. The Padres have lost eight of 10.“That was really good for us tonight. That is a great win, you know, against a team like the Padres. They are a really good team,” Perez said. “We scored five runs, and we got the game.” Singer (3-4) lasted six innings, giving up seven hits and four runs, two of which were earned. Scott Barlow got his fifth save with a scoreless ninth.“The fastball had really good late movement on it. I was able to move that around the zone. The slider helped me a lot tonight,” Singer said. “I think I attacked the zone pretty well tonight.”San Diego ...

Ober, Farmer lead Twins to 5-1 victory over Kershaw, Dodgers

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:48:01 GMT

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Bailey Ober allowed one run in six innings, Kyle Farmer homered and drove in three runs, and the Minnesota Twins defeated Los Angeles 5-1 Tuesday night as Dodgers ace Clayton Kershaw took the mound three days after the death of his mother.Marianne Tombaugh died Saturday, according to Ellen Kershaw. The pitcher’s wife made the announcement that day during the dedication of a refurbished youth baseball field supported by his charity foundation.Kershaw (6-3) struck out seven in four innings, but faced constant traffic. The left-hander allowed seven hits, one walk and hit a batter.Ober (3-0) allowed one run on six hits and struck out six. The Twins got their leadoff batter aboard four times and converted that into runs three times.Farmer extended his hitting streak to nine games with an RBI single in the first inning. The third baseman then extended the lead to four runs in the ninth with a two-run shot to left-center.Willi Castro had two hits, including an RBI single...

Ban Wagner Group, demands Russian lawmaker

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:48:01 GMT

A veteran Russian politician and former army commander called for a crackdown on the country’s notorious private military company, Wagner Group, as tensions rise over its role in the invasion of Ukraine.Viktor Sobolev, a former lieutenant general in the armed forces who now sits as a Communist Party MP, branded the mercenary outfit “an illegal armed formation” in a statement on Tuesday. “It is not clear where [the Wagner Group] is registered and what it does,” Sobolev said. He warned regular soldiers defecting into its ranks could face up to 15 years in prison.Moscow outsourced much of the fighting around the Ukrainian city of Bakhmut to Wagner in recent weeks. The group’s founder, oligarch Yevgeny Prigozhin, accused top generals of failing to supply his troops in a series of furious attacks on the top brass.The Washington Post reported on Monday leaked documents revealed Prigozhin may have offered to give information on Russian army positions to ...

Russia’s threat to exit Ukraine grain deal adds risk to global food security

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:48:01 GMT

GENEVA (AP) — The United Nations is racing to extend a deal that has allowed shipments of Ukrainian grain through the Black Sea to parts of the world struggling with hunger, helping ease a global food crisis exacerbated by the war Russia launched more than a year ago.The breakthrough accord that the U.N. and Turkey brokered with the warring sides last summer came with a separate agreement to ease shipments of Russian food and fertilizer that Moscow insists hasn’t been applied. Russia set a Thursday deadline for its concerns to be ironed out or it’s bowing out. Such brinkmanship isn’t new: With a similar extension in the balance in March, Russia unilaterally decided to renew the deal for just 60 days instead of the 120 days outlined in the agreement. U.N. officials and analysts warn that a failure to extend the Black Sea Grain Initiative could hurt countries in Africa, the Middle East and parts of Asia that rely on Ukrainian wheat, barley, vegetable oil and other af...

‘I only operate:’ A Ukrainian trauma surgeon has an all-consuming task during Russia’s war

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:48:01 GMT

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — As the lead trauma surgeon at a military hospital in Ukraine’s capital, Petro Nikitin has his hands deep in a war churning hundreds of kilometers (miles) away. The 59-year-old doctor’s work to repair the bodies of some of the most badly injured soldiers is all-consuming. “I only operate,” Nikitin said, taking a short pause as his team continued surgery on a patient. “I do nothing else in my life now. I don’t see my children, who have been evacuated, I don’t see my wife, who has been evacuated, I live by myself, and all I do is treat the wounded.”While the Ukrainian military does not provide casualty figures, some Western sources estimate more than 100,000 Ukrainian troops have been killed or wounded since Russia invaded the country almost 15 months ago. Some end up on the operating tables in Nikitin’s hospital, which like other Ukrainian military hospitals, is short-staffed because physicians were pulled away to work in field hospitals cl...

Graduation gift idea: Step-by-step guide to making a candy-and-cash lei

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:48:01 GMT

Where do people get those festive candy-and-cash lei for graduation ceremonies? You could scour your local stores and Facebook groups for someone who sells them – but you could also make a custom one for your graduate. The materials for a candy-and-cash lei are relatively inexpensive, and you can customize the different elements especially for your loved one.(Photo by Darleene Powells/MediaNews Group)Materials needed:Cash – the newer the bills, the better.Candy – any fun-sized candy works, but you can also use smaller, compact hard candies.Curling ribbon – you can use your graduate’s favorite colors, or match with their school colors.Clear plastic that can be wrapped around the candy – this guide uses 2-inch clear poly plastic tubing purchased from eBay, but clear cellophane or cling wrap can also be used if necessary.ScissorsTapeAn iron, if available(Photo by Darleene Powells/MediaNews Group)Step one: Sort out the bills. Break out an iron for any that are slightly less than crisp, ...

‘Runnin’, gunnin’ Twins,’ collect first Dodger Stadium win since 2005

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:48:01 GMT

LOS ANGELES — How’s this for an unbelievable fact?In their entire history — and sure, there hadn’t been all that many opportunities — the Twins had only won one game at Dodger Stadium entering Tuesday night. Ever. That game came in 2005, when most of the players on the current team were just elementary school students.“That blows my damn mind,” designated hitter Byron Buxton said.Buxton and company used a little small ball, some big contributions from relievers forced into different spots and yet another solid start from Bailey Ober to nab the franchise’s second-ever win at Dodger Stadium on Tuesday night, beating the Dodgers 5-1 and snapping an 11-game losing streak against them.The win came after a hard-fought loss the night before during which the Twins (24-19) twice battled back in the late innings before falling in the 12th. With a bullpen that was taxed from the night before, the Twins knew that if they were going to win on Tuesday, it was going to look a little different than...