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Rays’ Wander Franco moved to administrative leave while MLB, Dominican authorities investigate

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:39:54 GMT

NEW YORK. (AP) — Wander Franco was placed on administrative leave indefinitely by Major League Baseball on Tuesday while authorities in the Dominican Republic investigate the All-Star shortstop for an alleged relationship with a minor.The 22-year-old will be paid and receive service time while on administrative leave under an agreement with the players’ association that did not set a timetable for a decision on whether he will be disciplined.Franco was placed on the restricted list for a week on Aug. 14 while MLB launched an investigation following social media posts suggesting he was in a relationship with a minor. The AP has not been able to verify the reported posts. MLB said the shift to administrative leave was not disciplinary under the sport’s joint domestic violence, sexual assault and child abuse policy. The administrative leave did not have the usual seven-day limit under the policy, so it is possible Franco will not return this season.Ángel Darío Tejeda Fabal, a pro...

After a month at sea, 37 Senegalese survivors of a deadly migration attempt to Spain return home

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:39:54 GMT

DAKAR, Senegal (AP) — A few dozen survivors of a deadly sea attempt to migrate to Europe reunited with their tearful families in Senegal, a week after they were found adrift off the Atlantic archipelago of Cape Verde. A boat carrying more than 100 people is believed to have set off from Senegal toward Spain’s Canary Islands on July 10 but never reached its destination. More than 60 migrants are feared dead from the ill-fated voyage. Last week, a Spanish fishing vessel rescued 38 people who were brought to Cape Verde before being returned to Senegal.Senegalese officials said a military plane repatriated 37 men, including five minors and a citizen from neighboring Guinea-Bissau, from Cape Verde’s Sal Island on Monday. Associated Press journalists saw some of the survivors getting carried into ambulances at the airport in Senegal’s capital, Dakar. One survivor remained hospitalized in the Cape Verdean capital of Praia, according to the local Red Cross. The migration route from We...

Spain’s acting prime minister greets World Cup champs, criticizes federation head for kissing player

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:39:54 GMT

BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — Spain’s acting prime minister praised the country’s Women’s World Cup champions during an audience at the presidential palace on Tuesday, and later slammed the head of the Spanish soccer federation for kissing a team member on the lips without her consent.“You have achieved something very important. The girls who watch you see soccer as a place where they can develop athletically and personally,” Pedro Sánchez said while posing for a group photo with the soccer team in Madrid. “The 21st century will be the century of women on all fronts, and the century of effective equality between men and women.”Sánchez said the team members will be awarded Spain’s golden medal of sports achievement in honor of their 1-0 victory on Sunday in the final against England in Sydney, Australia.Gender equality and women’s rights have been cornerstones of Sánchez’s leftist government. But Spain’s Women’s World Cup success has been mar...

Firefighters in Greece have discovered the bodies of 18 people in an area struck by a major wildfire

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:39:54 GMT

ALEXANDROUPOLIS, Greece (AP) — Firefighters found the bodies of 18 people while scouring the area of a major wildfire in northeastern Greece burning out of control for a fourth day Tuesday. Authorities were examining whether the group might have been migrants who entered the country through the nearby border with Turkey.The discovery in the Avanta area of the city of Alexandroupolis came as hundreds of firefighters battled dozens of wildfires breaking out across the country, fanned by gale-force winds. On Monday, two people died and two firefighters were injured in separate fires in northern and central Greece.With their hot, dry summers, southern European countries are particularly prone to wildfires. Another major blaze was burning across Tenerife in Spain’s Canary Islands for a week, although no injuries or damage to homes was reported.European Union officials have blamed climate change for the increasing frequency and intensity of wildfires in Europe, noting that 2022 was ...

Liberals look to sitting judges to lead foreign interference inquiry: LeBlanc

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:39:54 GMT

CHARLOTTETOWN — It is taking longer than expected to find someone to lead a public inquiry into foreign interference because the government is in talks with sitting judges, Public Safety Minister Dominic LeBlanc said Tuesday, which means following specific protocols of engagement.LeBlanc has been working with opposition House leaders since June to agree on the scope of a public inquiry as well as who would lead it. He would not confirm or deny reports many people had turned down requests to be the commissioner after the partisan fighting that led former governor general David Johnston to resign as special rapporteur.“We all hoped that this might have been concluded in a final way earlier, but the good news is we’re continuing to do the work necessary and optimistic about getting to the right place.”LeBlanc said he anticipated talking to the House leaders about it again later Tuesday.But in French he said it is a complicated process that doesn’t allow the gove...

Canada to seek judicial review of latest U.S. decision on softwood lumber duties

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:39:54 GMT

WASHINGTON — The federal government in Ottawa is pushing back against the latest U.S. decision to keep imposing duties on Canadian softwood lumber. Trade Minister Mary Ng says Canada is seeking a judicial review of last month’s Treasury Department assessment of the levies, which she calls unfair, unjust and illegal. The latest administrative review provided modest relief, but maintained the combined duty rate at 7.99 per cent. Ng is also urging U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai to sit down and negotiate a resolution to the decades-old dispute. Such a deal would be challenging, since the U.S. takes issue with a long-standing regulatory system in Canada it says puts American producers at a disadvantage.Tai has said the U.S. would be willing to negotiate, but only if Canada does away with a system that allows provinces to set prices for timber from Crown land.“For years, the United States has imposed unfair, unjust and illegal duties on Canadian softwood lumber, hurti...

Welcome Baby: Montreal to give out free boxes of items for families with newborns

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:39:54 GMT

Montreal will give out boxes of free toys and baby supplies to every family in the city with a new infant starting next year.The so-called Welcome Baby boxes will be available in 45 city libraries as of Jan. 1, 2024, for newborns, new arrivals and adopted children up to one year old.The colourful boxes will contain 12 items from local vendors with a total value of $200, including a blanket, a bath towel, a pair of pants, a pool diaper, a rattle, a silicone bib, a stuffed animal and a toothbrush.Mayor Valérie Plante says the goal of the program is to simplify families’ lives and reduce their financial burden.She says she also hopes the boxes encourage families to settle in Montreal and that the gifts foster a sense of belonging among children.The program fulfils one of the mayor’s campaign promises before her re-election in 2021 to a second four-year term.This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 22, 2023.The Canadian Press

Some plants are more flammable than others. How gardeners can reduce the risks

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:39:54 GMT

The deadly wildfires in Hawaii this month were fueled in part by plants, in particular invasive grasses that have taken over land once occupied by sugar and pineapple plantations.Some plants are more flammable than others, says Michele Steinberg, wildfire division director at the National Fire Protection Association. But “there is no such thing as a fireproof plant,” she says — all plants can ignite under the right conditions.Those conditions include improper pruning, insufficient watering, and poor sanitation practices that allow dry, dead plant parts to remain on the soil surface in high-risk areas.If you live in a fire-risk zone (or an area where climate change is increasing the fire risk) and are selecting plants for your garden, knowing which ones offer some fire resistance and which are more flammable will serve you well. QUICKER TO CATCH FIREPlants that contain aromatic oils, resins, waxes or gummy sap are among the quickest to ignite, even if they’ve been well-watered and ca...

Man critically wounded during armed robbery in South Shore

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:39:54 GMT

CHICAGO — A 45-year-old man was critically wounded while being robbed Tuesday morning in South Shore.At around 4 a.m., CPD said the man was walking in the 7400 block of South Coles when multiple suspects exited a vehicle near him.He was then robbed of his personal belongings. At some point, at least one of the suspects opened fire.The 45-year-old was shot in the chest, abdomen and buttocks. He was transported to the University of Chicago Medical Center in critical condition. ‘Now he’s a real angel': South Side community gathers to remember slain 14-year-old boy No one is in custody.

WATCH LIVE | South Suburban Airport proposals to be accepted

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:39:54 GMT

MONEE, Ill. — Local leaders are celebrating a new law which will force the Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT) to accept development proposals for the long talked-about South Suburban Airport. WGN Investigates: Is decision day finally near for third Chicago airport? House Bill 2531 passed the House 72-40 on Mar. 16, and the Senate 33-20 on May 17. It was then signed by Gov. Pritzker on July 28. The subsequent law goes into effect Jan. 1, 2024 and puts a six-month deadline in place for IDOT to establish a prequalification process and begin accepting proposals to develop and maintain the airport.Tuesday, U.S. Representative Robin Kelly (IL-02) is set to host a press conference alongside several other area leaders to celebrate the impending prequalification process and discuss the impact they believe an airport will have on the region.WGN plans to livestream the event within this story beginning at approximately 10 a.m.The development has been debated for roughly four decade...