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Dutch court sentences ex-Pakistani cricketer to 12 years over reward for death of far-right lawmaker

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 19:03:08 GMT

THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — A Dutch court on Monday sentenced a former Pakistani cricketer to 12 years in prison over allegations that he had offered a reward for the death of firebrand anti-Islam Dutch lawmaker Geert Wilders.The suspect, identified by Wilders as Khalid Latif, is accused of offering a bounty of about 21,000 euros ($23,000) to anybody who killed Wilders.Latif did not appear in the high-security courtroom near Amsterdam’s Schiphol Airport for the trial and he was not represented by a lawyer. He is believed to be in Pakistan, which has no extradition agreement with the Netherlands.Prosecutors did not name Latif, but said in a statement that a video posted online in 2018 showed a famous Pakistan cricketer offering the money for killing Wilders. The lawmaker, who was present for the verdict, has lived under around-the-clock protection for years because of repeated threats to his life sparked by his fierce criticism of Islam.“The court has now ruled that a long-term unc...

Moscow and Pyongyang confirm North Korean leader Kim Jong Un will visit Russia to meet with Putin

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 19:03:08 GMT

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — Russia and North Korea confirmed Monday that North Korean leader Kim Jong Un will visit Russia in a highly anticipated meeting with President Vladimir Putin that has sparked Western concerns about a potential arms deal for Moscow’s war in Ukraine.A brief statement on the Kremlin’s website said Kim’s visit is at Putin’s invitation and would take place “in the coming days.” The visit also was reported by North Korea’s official Korean Central News Agency, which said the leaders would meet — without specifying when and where. Associated Press journalists near the North Korea-Russia frontier saw a green train with yellow trim — similar to the train used by Kim during previous foreign trips — at a station on the North Korean side of a border river.It was unclear whether Kim was on the train, which was seen moving back and forth between the station and the approach to the bridge that connects the countries. It had not crossed the bridge as of 7 p.m. (1000 GM...

Crescent Point plans $1.05B to $1.15B in development capital expenditures for 2024

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 19:03:08 GMT

CALGARY — Crescent Point Energy Corp. says it plans to spend $1.05 billion to $1.15 billion on development capital expenditures next year.Based on the plan, the company says it expects annual average production of 145,000 to 151,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day in 2024.The company says about 70 per cent of its 2024 budget is expected to be spent on its Kaybob Duvernay and Alberta Montney operations.The remaining portion of its capital budget will be spent on its long-cycle assets in Saskatchewan.Crescent Point says the preliminary guidance includes the planned sale of its North Dakota assets, which is expected to close in fourth quarter 2023.The company announced last month that it has signed a deal to sell its North Dakota assets to a private operator for about $675 million in cash.This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 11, 2023.Companies in this story: (TSX:CPG)The Canadian Press

Arguments in trial of man accused in London, Ont., attack set to begin today

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 19:03:08 GMT

Arguments are set to get underway Monday at the trial of a man facing terror-related murder charges in the deaths of four members of a Muslim family in Ontario.Nathaniel Veltman is accused of deliberately hitting members of the Afzaal family with his truck while they were out for a walk in London, Ont., on the evening of June 6, 2021.He has pleaded not guilty to four counts of first-degree murder and one count of attempted murder in what prosecutors allege was an act of terrorism.Jury selection for the trial, which is taking place in Windsor, Ont., wrapped last week, with 14 jurors and two alternates chosen.RELATED: Man accused of killing Muslim family members pleads not guilty as trial opensSuperior Court Justice Renee Pomerance ruled last year that a change of venue was warranted in the case, moving the trial from London to Windsor.The reasons for that decision, as well as the evidence and arguments presented in court on the matter, cannot be disclosed due to a publication ban.

UN rights chief calls for ‘urgent reversal’ to civilian rule in coup-hit African countries

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 19:03:08 GMT

GENEVA (AP) — The U.N. human rights chief called on Monday for an “urgent reversal” of military takeovers and return to civilian rule in countries in Africa where coups have driven out elected leaders in recent years as he assailed a multitude of crises across the globe. Volker Türk’s comments set the early tone for the U.N.’s top human rights body as he opened its fall session against the backdrop of conflicts and crises — including the plights of migrants from Myanmar to Mali and Mexico.Speaking of the decade-old crisis in the Sahel region that stretches across North Africa, in countries such as Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger, he pointed to the impacts of climate change and a lack of investment in services like education and health care as factors that have fueled extremism. “The unconstitutional changes in government that we have seen in the Sahel are not the solution,” Türk said. “We need instead an urgent reversal to civilian governance and open spaces where people ca...

Russia’s election commission says the ruling party wins the most votes in occupied Ukrainian regions

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 19:03:08 GMT

Russia’s Central Election Commission said Monday that the country’s ruling party won the most votes in elections held in occupied Ukrainian regions as Russian authorities attempt to tighten their grip on territories Moscow illegally annexed a year ago and still does not fully control.Voting for Russia-installed legislatures began last week . According to the Central Election Commission, lawmakers from the ruling party, United Russia, came out on top in the four Ukrainian regions Moscow annexed illegally in 2022 — Donetsk, Kherson, Luhansk and Zaporizhzhia — and on the Crimean Peninsula, which the Kremlin annexed in 2014. Balloting in the occupied areas of Ukraine has been denounced by Kyiv and the West as a sham and a violation of international law. On Friday, Ukrainian officials urged other countries not to recognize the results of the vote, which the Foreign Ministry called “fake elections.”The votes in the illegally annexed Ukrainian regions were timed to coincide with nationwide...

Escaped prisoner may have used bedsheets to strap himself to a truck, UK prosecutor says

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 19:03:08 GMT

LONDON (AP) — A former British soldier who escaped from prison may have sneaked out by using bedsheets to strap himself to the bottom of a food delivery truck, prosecutors said Monday. Daniel Abed Khalife, 21, was arrested while he was cycling on a canal towpath in west London on Saturday after a four-day manhunt. Khalife escaped Wednesday from Wandsworth Prison, a medium-security facility in southwest London where he had been awaiting trial on charges of terrorism and trying to spy for an enemy state.The ex-soldier appeared in the dock at Westminster Magistrates’ Court Monday for a brief hearing, speaking only to confirm his name and birthdate. He was remanded in custody after the hearing.Prosecutor Thomas Williams said Khalife, who held a job in the prison’s kitchen, allegedly escaped by strapping himself to the catering truck using “material which may have been from bed sheets.” He said police found the material underneath the truck, with clips at each end and m...

Hurricane Lee generates big swells along northern Caribbean while it churns through open waters

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 19:03:08 GMT

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — Hurricane Lee whipped up waves of more than 15 feet (5 meters) on Monday as the Category 3 storm cranked through open waters just north of the Caribbean region.The storm is not expected to make landfall. It was located some 340 miles (545 kilometers) north of the northern Leeward Islands. It had winds of up to 120 mph (195 kph) and was moving northwest at 7 mph (11 kph).A high surf advisory was in effect for Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands, with the National Weather Service warning of breaking waves of up to 15 feet (5 meters) for north and east-facing beaches.The National Hurricane Center also warned of dangerous surf and rip currents for most of the U.S. East Coast this week, but what the hurricane might do beyond that is unclear.“It remains too soon to know what level of impacts, if any, Lee might have along the U.S. East Coast and Atlantic Canada late this week, especially since the hurricane is expected to slow down considerably over t...

Escaped murderer slips out of search area, changes appearance and tries to contact former co-workers

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 19:03:08 GMT

PHOENIXVILLE, Pa. (AP) — Authorities searched Monday for an escaped murderer who has eluded capture since breaking out of a southeastern Pennsylvania prison a week and a half ago after they said over the weekend he slipped out of the search area, changed his appearance, stole a dairy delivery van and tried to contact acquaintances.Lt. Col. George Bivens of the Pennsylvania State Police said Sunday that Danelo Souza Cavalcante stole the unlocked van, which had the keys inside, sometime Saturday night about three-quarters of a mile (1.2 kilometers) from the northern perimeter of the search area where hundreds of law enforcement officers had been searching for him.Bivens vowed to “aggressively continue” the search with the aid of federal, state, county and local resources and expressed confidence that the fugitive would eventually be recaptured.“This is a minor setback,” he said. “We’ll get him, it’s a matter of time.”Baily’s Dairy said on its Facebook page that the delivery van ...

Kimberly Palmer: A fall financial cleanse could get your spending back on track

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 19:03:08 GMT

If summer is a season of spontaneity and indulgence, then fall offers a counterpoint: It’s a chance to get back on schedule, and back on budget.“Summer, with travel and no school, tends to be a really spendy time. The fall is a nice reset,” says Ashley Feinstein Gerstley, a certified financial planner and author of “The 30-Day Money Cleanse.”Gerstley says giving yourself a “money cleanse” offers a chance to carefully go over your spending and financial habits so you can make any necessary changes to end the year strong. With inflation and economic uncertainty in the background, that’s no easy task, but putting in the extra effort now can pay off.Here’s a step-by-step guide to a fall financial cleanse that could help get your budget on track for the rest of the year:START WITH A LOOK BACKNate Hoskin, a CFP and financial assistant at Brightside, a provider of financial wellness to employees, says the first step to a fall financial cleanse is to look backward, starting with your New Ye...