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Pop star Shakira is to face a second tax probe from Spain

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 12:45:43 GMT

BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — Pop star Shakira is facing more trouble from Spain’s tax office after a court near Barcelona said Thursday that it had agreed to open an investigation into a second case of alleged tax fraud by the Colombian singer.Shakira is already set to face trial at a date to be determined for allegedly failing to pay 14.5 million euros ($13.9 million) in taxes on income earned between 2012 and 2014. The entertainer has denied any wrongdoing.Now, a Spanish judge has agreed with state prosecutors to probe two possible cases of tax fraud by Shakira from 2018. The court said it had no information on how much money was in question.Both cases are being handled by a court in the town of Esplugues de Llobregat, near Barcelona.The first case that is set to go to trial hinges on where Shakira lived during 2012-14. Prosecutors in Barcelona have alleged the Grammy winner spent more than half of that period in Spain and should have paid taxes in the country, even though her official...

Biden pushes a strong role for unions in tech jobs, even as potential strikes are on the horizon

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 12:45:43 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden is courting unions as a cornerstone of the country’s economic future with a speech at a Philadelphia shipyard on Thursday — just as some major unions are weighing strikes that could disrupt the growth he wants to campaign on in 2024.Tensions are rising between unions and companies about a rapidly evolving economy in which artificial intelligence, clean energy and e-commerce are rewriting some of the basic rules of work. Biden is trying to allay those concerns by saying unions should be part of that future. But the Democratic president also knows from past experience that a strike could harm his reelection chances.Biden has long called on businesses to hire unionized workers, saying that the premium paid will lead to higher quality work. But companies seem reluctant to meet unions’ terms in separate contract talks with script writers, actors, autoworkers and UPS employees. In a speech last month about his economic vision, Biden recall...

A Croatian firefighter has died in a storm that swept the Balkans, bringing the toll to 6 dead

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 12:45:43 GMT

ZAGREB, Croatia (AP) — A Croatian firefighter has died during a deadly storm that swept the Balkans after a heatwave, brining the death toll to six, officials said Thursday.Emergency services in Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and Serbia scrambled Thursday to restore electricity and clear the debris left over after Wednesday’s chaos.Meteorologists said the storm was extremely powerful as it was formed after a string of very hot days. Experts say extreme weather conditions are likely fueled by climate change.Elsewhere in Europe, a continuing heat wave caused wildfires and public health warnings. Throughout the Balkan region, authorities reported hundreds of injured, including some seriously, from fallen trees, roof parts or other object blown off by the swirling winds.The firefighter in the eastern Croatian town of Tovarnik died “tragically’ during the storm, the his unit said, revealing no other details.Three more people died on Wednesday in Croatia, one in Slovenia and ...

Didn’t hit the Powerball jackpot? Your ticket may still be a winner. Here’s how

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 12:45:43 GMT

(NEXSTAR) — They say all good things must come to an end, and that's especially true for the Powerball jackpot, which surpassed $1 billion before being won last night. If your ticket didn't win the jackpot, don't throw it away just yet — it might still have won you some money.While everyone plays for the top prize, there are eight other ways in which you can win while playing Powerball. In fact, your chances of winning any prize are 1 in 24.87.The smallest prize available is $4. To win this, you need to match the red Powerball number, or match one white ball number and the Powerball number. If you opted into Power Play when buying your ticket, your prize could grow to as much as $40. Where have the most Powerball, Mega Millions jackpot tickets been sold? A Power Play, which costs an extra $1 per play, can increase your non-jackpot prize by 2, 3, 4, 5, or 10 times. The multiplier is randomly selected before each drawing, and the 10X multiplier is only available when the jackpot is ...

Single ticket in California wins $1.08 billion Powerball jackpot

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 12:45:43 GMT

LOS ANGELES (NEXSTAR) - A winning ticket has been sold in California for the Powerball jackpot worth an estimated $1.08 billion, the sixth largest in U.S. history and the 3rd largest in the history of the game.The winning numbers for Wednesday night’s drawing were: white balls 7, 10, 11, 13, 24 and red Powerball 24. The California Lottery said on Twitter that the winning ticket was sold in Los Angeles at Las Palmitas Mini Market. Didn’t hit the Powerball jackpot? Your ticket may still be a winner. Here’s how Thirty-six $1 million-winning tickets and three $2 million einning tickets were sold. The $2 million winners were sold in Florida, Pennsylvania and Rhode Island. The $1 million winners were sold in:California: 7Connecticut: 1Florida: 4 Illinois: 1Indiana: 1Kentucky: 1Massachusetts: 3Maryland: 2Missouri: 1New Hampshire: 1New Jersey: 2New York: 5Ohio: 1Texas: 4Wisonsin: 1West Virginia: 1Final ticket sales pushed the jackpot beyond its earlier estimate of $1 billion to ...

Macron decides to keep French PM in role despite pension unrest and riots

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 12:45:43 GMT

French President Emmanuel Macron has decided to keep Elisabeth Borne (pictured) in her role as prime minister, an official at the president's office said on Monday (17 July), rejecting pressure to give a new direction to his government after a tumultuous few months.Months of unrest and strikes over Macron's pension reform in the spring as well as five days of riots and looting in French cities earlier this month had fuelled calls among political opponents and some government insiders for a reshuffle.But with no clear candidate to replace Borne, a former technocrat who critics say lacks charisma but supporters say has delivered on many of Macron's campaign pledges already, the French leader decided to keep her at the helm of cabinet."To ensure stability and in-depth work, the president has decided to maintain the prime minister," Macron's office said.The President will also "by the end of the week" provide clues about his plans for the coming months, the official said.French media sa...

Address by the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev at the First Summit of the Gulf Cooperation Council and Central Asian countries

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 12:45:43 GMT

BISMILLAHIR RAHMANIR RAHEEM! Distinguished heads of delegations! Distinguished Secretary-General!I am indeed pleased to see you all today at the First Summit of the Gulf Cooperation Council and Central Asian countries.We have been looking forward to our historical meeting in the beautiful and unique Jeddah, the symbolic gateway to the holy city of Mecca.I echo the words of gratitude expressed to the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, His Majesty King Salman Bin Abdulaziz Al Saud and ‏His Royal Highness Prince Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud, the Crown Prince and Prime Minister, for initiating this high-profile event and excellent arrangements.Dear participants of the summit!The peoples of Central Asia and the Gulf Region have long been linked by close trade relations, common values and traditions, and most importantly, our sacred religion of Islam.We recall with great pride the incomparable contribution of our great intellectuals and scholars in the development of historical relations b...

Ask Amy: My wife is wonderful, but she has a grudge against my entire family

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 12:45:43 GMT

Dear Amy: I am married to a wonderful woman. We just completed 20 years of marriage and have two fantastic teenagers. Our life is fairly blissful.Unfortunately, we are cut off from our families. My wife only gets along with her mother; no one else. She has not talked to her brother in years. She barely speaks to my family when we visit them every other year.I feel like I have eloped with her to a distant island.She expects everyone to behave in a certain manner and if they don’t, she holds grudges against them forever. She will not forgive and move on. She brings up stuff from years ago that no one even remembers. Even a mention of anyone from my family leads to a fight and a chronological list of gripes.I would like my children to meet their relatives, but she just refuses to budge.Every few weeks, she will select something, pick a fight and be grumpy for a few days.My family members are eager to move past any disagreements. They have apologized for things they might have sai...

Harriette Cole: They talk about how my wife dresses, and I don’t like it

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 12:45:43 GMT

DEAR HARRIETTE: My wife dresses very sexily. She often wears sheer clothing that reveals the curves of her body. I like it, but I have noticed that some people in our friend group do not.Related ArticlesAdvice | Harriette Cole: My husband lives in the lakehouse so he can avoid my teen daughter Advice | Harriette Cole: It bugs me when they assume I’m privileged Advice | Harriette Cole: How can I get invited to the good parties? Advice | Harriette Cole: My mom takes money from my bank account to give to my siblings Advice | Harriette Cole: Everyone wants my success tips, but they don’t really care about me What’s weird is that the very people I see saying things about her behind her back will wear similar clothing. The main difference is that my wife is a curvy woman, and these other women are bone-thin. They seem to think that it’s OK to wear sexy clothes as a size 6, but it’...

Yellen visits Vietnam, seeking to build US ties and supply chains, and offset tensions with China

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 12:45:43 GMT

HANOI (AP) — The U.S. considers building strong economic and security ties with Vietnam a priority, U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said Thursday as she met with Vietnamese officials in a visit aimed at fortifying America’s relations across Asia. Yellen arrived in Vietnam after visits to Beijing and to India, where she attended financial meetings of the Group of 20 major industrial economies. “The United States considers Vietnam a key partner in advancing a free and open Indo-Pacific,” Yellen told Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh, according to remarks provided by the U.S. Treasury Department.A “free and open Indo-Pacific” refers to the latest iteration of broad U.S. diplomacy aimed at cultivating stronger ties with other countries in the region to counter China’s growing sway among its neighbors. “Vietnam is also a close economic partner, with our two-way trade reaching record highs last year and the United States serving as Vietnam’s largest export market,...