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Rishi Sunak appears to rule out spring UK election

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:30:44 GMT

LONDON — Rishi Sunak said his “working assumption” is that he won’t call a U.K. general election until the second half of 2024.In his clearest hint yet at timing for the poll, the British Prime Minister told ITV: “My working assumption is we’ll have a general election in the second half of this year.”Sunak, whose party is trailing in the polls, must call an election by 2025 under U.K. rules. But within those limits, the timing is in his gift.His comments come amid pressure from the opposition parties to call an election in the spring. Speculation has long swirled in Westminster about the timing of the vote. Chancellor Jeremy Hunt announced recently that the spring budget will take place earlier than usual on March 6. Cuts to the national insurance tax are also being rolled out this month in a move seen as a pre-election gambit. Local elections are due to take place in May. 

2 dead after early morning Dorchester crash

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:30:44 GMT

An early morning crash on Morrissey Boulevard in Dorchester Thursday claimed the lives of two.Massachusetts State Police confirmed that two occupants of a vehicle which rolled over on the street suffered fatal injuries. A third has life-threatening injuries and a fourth sustained only minor injuries. https://twitter.com/MassStatePolice/status/1742879100291694932Just before 3:30 a.m. authorities responded to the accident on Morrissey Boulevard, which was closed for multiple hours. Boston and Massachusetts State Police were both present at the scene. This is a developing story; stay with 7NEWS on-air and online for the latest updates.

What you should have in stock when preparing for a winter storm

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:30:44 GMT

(CNN) — Powerful storms can be dangerous, in some instances cutting off heat, power and communication services for days — and sometimes even longer.To make sure you’re best prepared, start with some basics: Learn how to keep your pipes from freezing (for example, you can open cabinets under sinks to let heat in or let faucets drip), test smoke alarms and carbon monoxide detectors, have extra batteries for radios and flashlights, charge electronics and consider specific needs of everyone at home, like medication.You should have at least three days’ worth of food and water for everyone in your household, according to Joann Sands, a clinical assistant professor in the School of Nursing at the University of Buffalo.Choose groceries that have a long shelf life, don’t require cooking and are not too salty or spicy, because those foods mean you’ll likely drink more water, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends.Here’s what to stock up on.High-protein and non-...

Killing of imam outside New Jersey mosque doesn’t appear motivated by bias, officials say as search for shooter continues

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:30:44 GMT

(CNN) — Officials are searching for the shooter in the killing of an imam outside a Newark, New Jersey, mosque, as they work to determine what led up to the slaying of the man remembered as a beacon in his community.Imam Hassan Sharif was shot several times outside the Masjid Muhammad-Newark on Wednesday just before the dawn prayer, authorities said. The imam, the mosque’s prayer leader, died hours later at a hospital.“It does not appear that the Imam was a victim of a biased crime or that this is related to terrorism,” Acting Essex County Prosecutor Theodore N. Stephens II said at a Wednesday news conference.New Jersey Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin said while evidence found so far doesn’t point to bias, investigators don’t yet know what motivated the shooting.Authorities asked members of the public to come forward with any information Wednesday as police looked for video surveillance from the area.“We don’t yet know all the details, but here is w...

US Mint releases coins honoring Harriet Tubman

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:30:44 GMT

(CNN) — The US Mint released commemorative coins honoring abolitionist Harriet Tubman Thursday.The coins include $5 gold coins, $1 silver coins and half-dollar coins that commemorate the bicentennial of her birth. This is the first time the US Mint has honored Tubman with coins, according to the agency.“​We all owe Harriet Tubman a huge debt of gratitude because I, and so many others, would not be where we are today if not for her heroism, her passion for freedom for our people and for her service to this country,” US Mint Director Ventris Gibson, the first Black director of the bureau, told CNN.“At the Mint, we like to say that coins are miniature canvases of art, and the Harriet Tubman coins are truly stunning works of art.”Ventris continued, “These coins embody her spirit, her perseverance, her tireless efforts, and her desire for freedom for all individuals.”In August 2022, President Joe Biden signed the Harriet Tubman Bicentenni...

Foreign conflicts are taking up a lot of Biden’s time as he fights for his political future at home

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:30:44 GMT

(CNN) — Speaking to a group of Democratic donors at a Washington hotel last month, President Joe Biden wanted to underscore just how much of his time lately has been spent confronting a chaotic world.Seventy-five percent of his job, Biden guessed, is consumed dealing with foreign leaders and traveling the world.Whether or not that’s an accurate calculation of how Biden spends his days — aides said it sounded elevated amid an intensive stretch of diplomacy — Biden’s remark underscored a looming quandary for himself and his team: how do you respond to two overseas wars that have divided Americans and consumed vast swaths of time while also running a campaign whose stakes are nothing less than the future of American democracy?In polls, most Americans do not rank foreign policy near the top of their list of concerns. Previous incumbents have run into political trouble and lost when voters view them as overly focused on problems abroad rather than at ho...

Chicago Bears QB confidential: The chatter inside NFL circles on Justin Fields’ future and Caleb Williams’ potential

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:30:44 GMT

The Chicago Bears have one game left — a fun finale Sunday in Green Bay — with a chance to punctuate their late-season surge while eliminating the rival Packers from playoff contention. Inside Halas Hall, the focus remains centered on that game with players and coaches embracing their opportunity to finish strong.The NFL world, however, teems with curiosity about how the Bears will navigate a potentially landmark 2024 offseason with so many high-profile and high-stakes decisions ahead. With a rapidly improving defense, some legitimate firepower on offense and, yes, the No. 1 draft pick, some see this as the ultimate “Choose Your Own Adventure” for general manager Ryan Poles and President/CEO Kevin Warren.“Absolutely fascinating,” one league GM said. “Whatever path they choose to go down, they have options. And really, there’s not a bad option. They’re in a really good spot.”Will quarterback Justin Fields still have a locker...

Serbia’s army proposes bringing back the draft as tensions continue to rise in the Balkans

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:30:44 GMT

BELGRADE, Serbia (AP) — Serbia should reintroduce compulsory military service, the defense ministry said Thursday, as tensions continue to escalate in the Balkans.The ministry said in a statement that the proposal for service of up to four months is made “in order to increase the defense capabilities of the Serbian Armed Forces, through the rejuvenation and improvement in the training of the active and reserve forces.”It said the proposal by the Serbian Armed Forces General Staff comes after “a detailed consideration of the general security situation and current challenges faced by the Republic of Serbia as a militarily neutral country.”It added that the proposal was forwarded to Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic, for his consideration. It did not specify the age span of the potential draftees.Serbia suspended mandatory military service in 2011 amid the push to professionalize the armed forces. But the country now appears close to bringing back the draft after a long campaign...

Taiwan’s presidential candidate Ko Wen-je seeks a middle ground with China, attracting young voters

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:30:44 GMT

HSINCHU, Taiwan (AP) — With Taiwan’s presidential and parliamentary elections less than two weeks away, the island’s alternative party candidate Ko Wen-je is promoting a policy of patience toward China, which has been upping its threat to annex the island by force. In the middle of a day of campaigning in the city of Hsinchu, home to many of Taiwan’s most prosperous technology firms, Ko took a half-hour lunch break to speak with The Associated Press in Mandarin Chinese and English, often expanding on his answers in his well-known erudite manner. Ko, a surgeon and former mayor of the capital Taipei, likened the relationship between the sides to a tumor that should be left to itself while the sides engage in talks on a future relationship. “Thirty years ago, when I was a surgeon, if we found a tumor, we would try to remove it. But at this moment, we just try to live with it,” he said. China remains an issue that must be managed, without sparking a major confrontation between the sides...

Successful evacuation from burning Japan Airlines jet highlights dogged devotion to safety

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:30:44 GMT

BANGKOK (AP) — The swift and safe evacuation of a Japan Airlines jet that caught fire after hitting a Coast Guard aircraft while it was landing Tuesday at Tokyo’s Haneda airport reflects a dogged dedication to safety and training by the airline, and hard experience from past disasters. JAL set up a Safety Promotion Center at the airport in 2006 to reflect lessons learned from the Aug. 12, 1985, crash of Flight 123 into a mountain north of Tokyo. It was the world’s worst single-aircraft disaster, killing 520 people with only four survivors. JAL staff maintain a memorial at the site at Otsuka Ridge and new employees climb to it to pay their respects. “In the face of the pain and grief of the bereaved families and public distrust in airline safety, we pledged we would never again allow such a tragic accident to occur,” the airline says on its website.Only 17 people suffered slight injuries when fleeing the Airbus 350 via evacuation slides and running for their lives Tuesday eveni...