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House Democrats Press Biden to Block Military Aid to Pakistan Over Human Rights Abuses, Jailing of Imran Khan

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 13:15:51 GMT

Eleven Democrats in the House of Representatives are calling on the State Department to conduct a probe into human rights abuses inside Pakistan, with an eye toward restricting aid based on potential violations of the Leahy Act, according to a letter to Secretary of State Antony Blinken.Led by Ilhan Omar of Minnesota and Rep. Greg Casar of Texas, the letter expresses “deep concern about the ongoing human rights violations in Pakistan,” which has been in a state of political crisis since the military-engineered removal of former Prime Minister Imran Khan last year. Khan was removed from office following a no-confidence vote organized by the military and his civilian opponents. The Leahy Law, as it’s often called, bars military assistance to government entities engaged in abuse.According to a classified Pakistani intelligence document reported in August by The Intercept, the effort to remove Khan also came partly on the back of pressure from the U.S. government, which had been an...

Correction: Law Professor Killing story

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 13:15:51 GMT

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) — In a story published November 14, 2023, about the arrest of Donna Adelson in the murder of her son-in-law Daniel Markel, The Associated Press erroneously reported that Katie Magbanua and Sigfredo Garcia were once married. While they sometimes identified as married, they were never officially married. Also, Garcia was not a member of the Latin Kings gang, only his co-conspirator, Luis Rivera was.Source

Defeated Virginia candidate whose explicit videos surfaced says she may not be done with politics

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 13:15:51 GMT

HENRICO, Va. (AP) — Susanna Gibson lost her Virginia legislative race this month, but she may not be done with politics.Gibson, a Democrat whose House of Delegates campaign and personal life were rocked by news reports that she had livestreamed sex acts with her husband on a pornographic website, isn’t ruling out another run for office someday, she told The Associated Press in her first interview since the controversy erupted in September.While expressing regret about what unfolded, Gibson is unapologetic about her participation in the online sex acts. She maintains that a crime was committed when members of the news media were alerted to the existence of videos documenting what had been livestreamed. Moving forward, she says she wants to find ways to support and encourage other women running for office, particularly those who might find themselves in situations that bear similarities to hers.Gibson, who has faced harassment and death threats since the disclosure of the videos...

Live updates | Israeli troops find body of hostage during search of Gaza hospital complex

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 13:15:51 GMT

Israel’s military said it found the body of another hostage in a building adjacent to Gaza City’s Shifa Hospital, the focus of clashing narratives over who is to blame for the widespread suffering of Palestinian civilians during the war between Israel and Hamas. The military identified the dead hostage on Friday as Cpl. Noa Marciano. The body of another hostage, Yehudit Weiss, was found Thursday as Israeli troops searched the hospital complex. Israel accuses Hamas of using Palestinians as human shields, while Palestinians and rights groups say Israel has recklessly endangered civilians as it seeks to eradicate the militant group. Aid agencies said they had to call off deliveries of basic necessities in the Gaza Strip due to a lack of fuel. They warned of possible widespread starvation in the besieged enclave because of a lack of fuel. They said most people in Gaza were without adequate food and clean water.At least 11,470 Palestinians — two-thirds of them women and minor...

Texas woman convicted of killing pro cyclist ‘Mo’ Wilson faces life in prison at sentencing

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 13:15:51 GMT

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — A woman convicted of murder in the shooting death of rising professional cyclist Anna Moriah Wilson faces up to life in prison in Texas when sentenced in a case that led investigators on a 43-day international search to find her.Kaitlin Armstrong, 35, was convicted Thursday. Jurors will recommend a sentence after deliberations scheduled to resume Friday. Prosecutors said Armstrong gunned down the 25-year-old Wilson in a jealous rage in May 2022. Wilson, also known as “Mo,” had briefly dated Armstrong’s boyfriend several months earlier. Wilson went swimming and to a meal with him the day she was killed.After two weeks of testimony, jurors deliberated for about two hours before delivering their verdict.“From the day she was born, she had a force in her,” Wilson’s mother, Karen Wilson, told jurors Thursday at the start of the punishment phase of the trial. “She lived as if every day was her last day. And she lived it so fully. She never wasted any time. ̷...

Ethics chairman launches a new bid to expel George Santos after a withering report on his conduct

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 13:15:51 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — The chairman of the House Ethics Committee announced Friday he has filed a resolution to force a vote on expelling Rep. George Santos, R-N.Y., from Congress, one day after the committee issued a withering report detailing substantial evidence that Santos converted campaign donations for his own personal use.Santos easily survived an expulsion vote earlier this month as lawmakers in both parties stressed the need to allow due process, as Santos is also facing nearly two dozen charges in federal court. But the release of the committee’s findings has generated new momentum for ousting the scandal-plagued freshman. Shortly after the report was released, Santos announced he would not seek reelection.“The evidence uncovered in the Ethics Committee’s Investigative Subcommittee investigation is more than sufficient to warrant punishment and the most appropriate punishment, is expulsion,” said Rep. Michael Guest, R-Miss.The Ethics Committee referred its fi...

California fugitive sentenced for killing Florida woman in 1984

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 13:15:51 GMT

TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — A 65-year-old California fugitive who eluded authorities for nearly four decades before his arrest in June has been sentenced to 50 years in prison for killing a Florida woman.Donald Santini pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in a deal with prosecutors to avoid a first-degree murder charge. Circuit Judge Samantha Ward approved the deal before issuing the sentence in Tampa on Thursday, the Tampa Bay Times reported. The case had been set to go to trial in two weeks.“Good luck,” the judge told Santini, who has been in jail without bond since his arrest in June at his home near San Diego.”Thank you, Your Honor,” Santini, whose hands were cuffed in front of him, replied.Before his arrest, Santini had lived in California under the name of Wellman Simmonds. He was president of a local water board in Campo, a tiny suburb of San Diego, and he regularly appeared at public board meetings.The life he had built in California came to an end thanks to a tip from the Flo...

Apple will make a big change to iPhone messages next year

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 13:15:51 GMT

(CNN) — The long-standing battle over the iOS’ blue and Android’s green text bubbles will soon take a more friendly turn.Apple announced on Thursday plans to adopt a messaging standard that will finally bring iMessage features to Android users, eroding what some considered an element of Apple’s walled garden.The change – first reported by tech site 9to5Mac – will add features, such as read receipt, typing indicators, better support for group chats and higher quality media sharing of images and videos, across platforms.Apple told CNN in a statement it will add support for the standard, called RCS (Rich Communication Services), later next year. RCS is considered the replacement to alternatives such as SMS, or short messaging service, and can work over both Wi-Fi and mobile data.“We believe RCS Universal Profile will offer a better interoperability experience when compared to SMS or MMS,” the company said in the statement. “This will work alongside iMessage, which will continue to be t...

Missing EU: Scotland’s nationalists make fresh pitch to undo Brexit

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 13:15:51 GMT

LONDON — Scotland can “regain what has been lost because of Brexit” by rejoining the EU as an independent nation, the Scottish government argued Friday. But it’s got plenty of big hurdles to clear first.A new paper — written by senior officials working for the pro-independence government led by the Scottish National Party — sets out how an independent Scotland, no longer shackled to the U.K., could rejoin the bloc years after it was wrenched out by the Brexit referendum.The paper comes, however, at a difficult time for the Scottish independence movement. After losing a referendum on Scottish independence in 2014, the prospect of a second one appears more distant than ever. Declining polling numbers for the SNP, and the Westminster government’s long-running refusal to play ball both play a part. Thanks to the chaos that followed Nicola Sturgeon’s resignation as Scottish first minister and the steady revival of the Scottish Labour Party, the SNP is also w...

Scotland shares the EU’s values. Here’s how we’d seek to rejoin

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 13:15:51 GMT

Humza Yousaf is the first minister of Scotland and leader of the Scottish National Party.Scotland, like all European countries, is wrestling with huge challenges, while trying to build a better society and a stronger economy for our citizens. It’s been my job since I became first minister in March this year to lead Scotland through these challenging times and create those opportunities. To a large extent, my politics have been defined by the principle of solidarity: the sense that there is much more that unites us than divides us.The motto of the EU — “united in diversity” —  for me is much more than a nice phrase. The idea of working, as the EU says, for peace and prosperity, while recognizing that we are all enriched by different cultures, traditions and languages, goes to the very heart of my political beliefs.Seven years ago, people in Scotland voted decisively to remain inside the EU. They were driven, of course, by the economic advantages that come from b...