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War overshadows holiday integral to Russian identity

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:44:25 GMT

Victory Day, Russia’s most important secular holiday, lauds two tenets that are central to its identity: military might and moral rectitude. But the war in Ukraine undermines both this year.The holiday falling on Tuesday marks the 78th anniversary of Germany’s capitulation in World War II after a relentless Red Army offensive pushed German forces from Stalingrad, deep inside Russia, all the way to Berlin, about 2,200 kilometers (1,300 miles).The Soviet Union lost at least 20 million people in the war; the suffering and valor that went into the German defeat have been touchstones ever since.However, many regions have canceled their May 9 observances because of concerns the events could be targets for Ukrainian attacks. The famed parade in Moscow’s Red Square will go ahead following Russia’s claim of an attempted Ukrainian drone attack on the Kremlin, whose spires loom next to the parade venue, but amid ramped-up security measures. The use of drones has been once again ban...

USAID chief Power heads to Serbia, Kosovo to lower tensions

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:44:25 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — The United States’ top international development chief, Samantha Power, is heading to Serbia and Kosovo this week to meet with leaders there, as U.S. and European leaders work to stabilize relations between those two former wartime enemies at a time of heightened tensions.Power becomes the first head of the U.S. Agency for International Development to travel to Serbia, which maintains close historical and cultural ties with Russia.Serbia and Kosovo have remained on often hostile terms since Kosovo’s 1990s split from Serbia at the end of the Cold War. Frictions between Serbia and Kosovo, which has an ethnic Albanian majority and an ethnic Serb minority, have rebounded in the general tensions since Russia invaded Ukraine last year.Power is to meet with the prime ministers and presidents of both countries, encouraging both to stay on a path of normalizing relations between themselves and to keep moving toward membership in the European Union.She “will unde...

6 tanker crew members seized by pirates freed in W. Africa

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:44:25 GMT

COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) — Six crew members of a Liberian-flagged tanker held hostage for more than a month by pirates in West Africa have been freed, the Danish shipping company that owns the vessel said Monday. On March 25, pirates boarded the Monjasa Reformer southwest of Port Pointe-Noire, Congo. The ship was found abandoned five days later by a French navy patrol off the small island nation of Sao Tomé and Principe north of where the attack took place.The pirates left 10 of the 16 crew members on board, kidnapping the remaining six and taking them to shore in Nigeria.In a statement, Monjasa company spokesperson Thorstein Andreasen said that the ordeal of the six crew members had ended Monday and they were “now safely recovered from an undisclosed location in Nigeria.”All “are in a relatively good health condition given the difficult circumstances they have been under in the last more than five weeks,” Andreasen said in the statement. He added that they had received ...

Nigeria court hears opposition’s presidential vote challenge

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:44:25 GMT

ABUJA, Nigeria (AP) — A Nigerian court on Monday began its hearing on separate suits filed by the opposition to challenge the incumbent party’s victory in the country’s presidential election.The presidential tribunal at the Court of Appeal in the capital, Abuja, heard the opening statements of lawyers representing opposition parties, which are the challenging the outcome of the February vote won by Bola Tinubu of the ruling All Progressives Congress.As the court hearing began, armed security personnel blocked major access roads and prevented a handful of journalists and lawyers from entering the facility. Some protesters waved Nigerian flags and displayed placards, alleging that the electoral process was flawed.“Why I am demonstrating is because of the anger and the pain I have as a Nigerian not allowed to express and enjoy the resources of the land,” said protester James Mike, who accused the Nigerian political class of pilfering the country’s wealth from huge mineral a...

Waukegan High School volleyball coach dies after she was shot over weekend

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:44:25 GMT

WAUKEGAN — A Waukegan High School volleyball coach was shot and killed over the weekend.Niolis Collazo, 23, was killed in a shooting on 10th Street and Lewis Avenue in Waukegan around 10:45 p.m. Saturday. Investigators found several shell casings on the street near a white sedan.The circumstances surrounding the shooting have not yet been released and it is unknown if anyone is in custody.The school sent out the following email Monday to its community confirming Collazo's death, saying, in part:It is with great sadness that we report the unexpected passing of Ms. Niolis Collazo. Ms. Collazo worked as an assistant boys volleyball coach at Waukegan High School. She was also a counselor with Youth Guidance’s Working On Womanhood program, where she worked with young ladies at Smith Middle School. CPD investigates death of 24-year-old officer fatally shot outside home According to the district's spokesperson, Collazo coached the boys volleyball team and graduated from the high school i...

15-year-old facing 10 charges after Lake Central bomb threat message

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:44:25 GMT

ST. JOHN, Ind. — A 15-year-old boy is facing 10 charges after allegedly sending a bomb threat to other students at Lake Central High School.Last Monday, the school's administration and police began a preliminary investigation after learning at least two students received an airdrop message on their cell phones."Bombing the school, it will go off soon as the bell rings this is not a joke," the message read.No bomb was located after St. John police and K9 units responded to the scene and school was dismissed early as a precaution.After reviewing security cameras, police determined that two students entered the classroom directly before the airdrop message was sent and then were observed leaving the classroom.Police said neither students was supposed to be in that particular class. Warrants issued for parents after Northwest Indiana infant dies from ‘massive’ brain injury Detectives interviewed both students in the presence of their parents over the next two days. The FBI was request...

Best cities for freelancers and self-employed workers in 2023

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:44:25 GMT

(NerdWallet) - Though some workers have returned to offices, remote work has been normalized for others over the last three years. And some now have more autonomy to choose where they live.For freelancers in particular, it’s becoming more common for workers to settle in a city they like and then seek contracts with companies anywhere, says Keith Hall, president and CEO of the National Association for the Self-Employed.“I don't remember a time that I have heard more comments from self-employed people that they are looking to where they live based on their quality of life,” Hall says. “They pick a place to live for their quality of life, and then manage the business around that. I think that is a significant change from 15 years ago,” when the priorities were reversed.“That’s a fundamental shift that I think, long-term, is positive,” Hall adds.Here’s the 2023 list of the 10 best U.S. cities for freelancers and self-employed workers. Our analysis used recent metro-area data from the U....

How have average rent prices changed in Austin metro in the last year?

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:44:25 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) — The average one-bedroom apartment rent in Austin slightly dropped over the past year, while other parts of the metro area have seen double-digit cost spikes, according to a May report from rent.com.Rent.com estimates the average one-bedroom apartment costs $1,536 each month, down 3% from May 2022. Studio apartments' monthly costs were estimated around $999, while two-bedroom apartments average $1,849 each month under the latest figures. KXAN INVESTIGATES: Latest TxTag contractor penalized millions, but driver complaints persist While average monthly rents hover just over $1,500, nearly half of all apartments in Austin cost more than $2,100 monthly, per rent.com. An estimated 18% of apartments' rents cost less than $1,500, while 33% average between $1,501-$2,100 each month and 49% cost more than $2,100.Despite Austin seeing a slight decline in average one-bedroom rents compared to last year, the same can't be said for the rest of the metro. Outside of Austin, only f...

Company creates bamboo toilet paper to stop deforestation and tackle climate change

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:44:25 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) -- It is responsible for cutting down one million acres of trees every year according to the Natural Resources Defense Council, and you have some in your home right now: toilet paper. KXAN sat down with the founders of a company who set out to find a better way to manufacture toilet paper.After working in tech, Betterway cofounders Christian Cox and Eugenia Alliegro wanted to start a company that would make a difference for the environment."We didn’t want to take just a random widget and sell it," Cox said. "We wanted to do something we could get behind."And they launched their sustainable toilet paper company at just the right time."In January of 2020, so right before the pandemic," Alliegro said.“March 2020 came around and everyone started going crazy, and toilet paper was this item that everyone thought the world was running out of," Cox said.As demand surged, popular brands of toilet paper went out of stock."[Consumers] weren’t maybe aware of the issue or looking f...

St. Paul’s Harding High School claims MN teacher of the year

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:44:25 GMT

Amid a school year marred by violence, Harding High School got some positive news Sunday when one of its math teachers was named state teacher of the year by Education Minnesota.Michael Houston was one of two Harding teachers — and four from St. Paul Public Schools — among the 11 finalists for the teachers union’s award; he also was a finalist in 2017.Houston has coached football 18 of his 19 years at Harding, where he chairs the math department and is a union steward. He also is an adjunct professor at Concordia University, St. Paul, where he teaches math to aspiring elementary teachers.“Michael is passionate about his students and works tirelessly to engage them in the study of mathematics,” former colleague and fellow teacher Kimberley Nichols wrote in Houston’s nomination. “His ability to engage all students, particularly students of color, is exceptional; partly due to his lived experiences as a teacher of color and to his determination to help all stude...