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11 people were killed in a rebel attack in northeast Congo, an official says

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:22:18 GMT

KINSHASA, Congo (AP) — A rebel group has killed at least 11 people in northeastern Congo, a local official said Sunday.Isaac Kibira, a deputy to the governor of the Bwito area in North Kivu, said the victims were killed by M23, a rebel group the United Nations says has links to neighboring Rwanda. Rwanda denies the accusation. M23 rose to prominence 10 years ago when its fighters seized Goma, eastern Congo’s largest city on the border with Rwanda. It derives its name from a March 23, 2009, peace deal that it accuses the Congo government of not implementing.The bodies of 11 civilians were discovered Sunday morning, left in two neat rows in the grass. M23 had occupied the area since Tuesday, according to Paris-based research group Sahel Intelligence, before withdrawing.M23 is one of more than 120 armed groups fighting in Eastern Congo, most of whom are vying for land and control of mines with valuable minerals, while others are trying to protect their communities from rival armed grou...

100,000 square kilometres burned in record-breaking Canadian wildfire season

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:22:18 GMT

OTTAWA — Canada’s record-breaking wildfire season has now seen 100,000 square kilometres of land scorched as blazes continue to burn out of control across the entire country.The total area burned is roughly the size of Lake Ontario, Lake Erie and Lake Michigan combined. Canada surpassed the record set in 1989 for total area burned in one season on June 27 when the figure totalled 76,000 square kilometres, and communities have faced evacuation orders, heat warnings and poor air quality for months.The Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Centre says the majority of blazes are now in Western Canada, and British Columbia has the greatest number with 373 active fires. Based on forecasted conditions, Natural Resources Canada expects the wildfire season will continue to be unusually intense throughout July and into August. Emergency Preparedness Minister Bill Blair says the good news is that conditions are expected to improve significantly in Eastern Canada.

‘Mission: Impossible’ debuts with $80M over five days, igniting box office but missing expectations

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:22:18 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — After a globe-trotting publicity blitz by star Tom Cruise, “Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One” launched with a franchise-best $80 million over five days, though it came in shy of industry expectations with a $56.2 million haul over the three-day weekend.The Paramount Pictures debut was boosted by strong overseas sales of $155 million from 70 markets. But while a $235 million worldwide launch marked one of the best global openings of the year, “Dead Reckoning” couldn’t approach the high-speed velocity of last summer’s top film, “Top Gun: Maverick.”“Dead Reckoning Part One,” the seventh film in the 27-year-old series, had been forecast to better the franchise high of the previous installment, “Fallout,” which opened with $61 million domestically in 2018. Instead, it also fell short of the $57.8 million “Mission: Impossible II” debuted with in 2000.That puts the film’s opening-weekend tally very close to the tepid launch of Disney’s “Indiana Jone...

Carlos Alcaraz wins third set against Novak Djokovic in Wimbledon final and leads two sets to one

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:22:18 GMT

WIMBLEDON, England (AP) — Carlos Alcaraz won the third set of the Wimbledon final 6-1 against Novak Djokovic on Sunday and leads two sets to one. Djokovic won the first set 6-1 and Alcaraz won the second 7-6 (6).Djokovic is bidding for his record-tying eighth Wimbledon singles championship and fifth in a row. Alcaraz is trying for his first trophy at the All England Club.Djokovic wants his 24th Grand Slam title. Alcaraz wants his second.There is plenty on the line when Djokovic and Alcaraz meet each other at Centre Court.There’s also this: Alcaraz, a 20-year-old from Spain, is ranked No. 1, and Djokovic, a 36-year-old from Serbia, is ranked No. 2. In addition to the Wimbledon trophy, the winner will have the top ATP ranking.This is a rematch of the showdown between Alcaraz and Djokovic in the French Open semifinals last month.The first two sets were terrific, and each man won one. But then Alcaraz was overcome by cramping — he said later he thought nerves were the main cause —...

Lionel Messi set to be unveiled by Inter Miami and Major League Soccer

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:22:18 GMT

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) — The stage is set. Lionel Messi is about to meet his new fans at Inter Miami.An event billed as “The Unveil” — or “La PresentaSíon,” as the club is calling it — is Sunday night at the team’s stadium in Fort Lauderdale. It comes one day after Messi, Major League Soccer and Inter Miami finalized his signing through the 2025 season.It’s the start of a busy week of events for Messi with his new club. A news conference is scheduled for Monday, his first official training session is set for Tuesday and — if all goes to plan — he will play Friday in a Leagues Cup match against Cruz Azul.The World Cup champion for Argentina and seven-time Ballon d’Or winner as the world’s best player in a given year is joining a club that has the fewest points in MLS and is mired in an 11-match winless streak. Inter Miami opened the season with two wins and has gone 3-14-3 since.The club previously announced that Messi’s deal will be for 2 1/2 seasons and ...

Alabama rushes to adopt new congressional map amid disagreement on what district should look like

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:22:18 GMT

MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) — Federal judges that ordered Alabama to draw new congressional lines said the state should have a second district where Black voters are the majority “or something quite close to it” and have an opportunity to elect a representative of their choice.What exactly that map should look like is in dispute as lawmakers rush to draw new lines.Alabama lawmakers convene in special session Monday tasked by the court with adopting a new map by the end of the week. The directive comes after a surprise U.S. Supreme Court ruling that affirmed the lower court’s ruling that Alabama’s existing congressional map — with a single Black district — likely violated the Voting Rights Act. The group of voters who sued the state and won before the Supreme Court have proposed the creation of a second district where Black residents are 50.5% of the population. But Alabama Republicans, who hold a lopsided majority in the Alabama Legislature and will control the redistricting p...

Smoke from Canadian wildfires creates unhealthy conditions from Montana to Ohio

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:22:18 GMT

CHICAGO (AP) — The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency posted air quality alerts for several states stretching from Montana to Ohio on Sunday because of smoke blowing in from Canadian wildfires.“Air Quality alerts are in place for much of the Great Lakes, Midwest, and northern High Plains,” the National Weather Service said. “This is due to the lingering thick concentration of Canadian wildfire smoke over these regions. While the concentration of smoke in the atmosphere should begin to wain by Monday, there is still enough smoke to support unhealthy air quality that is unhealthy for sensitive groups in parts of these regions into the start of the upcoming week.”The U.S. EPA’s AirNow air quality page rated the air in Chicago as “unhealthy” as of 9 a.m. CDT Sunday. And in Michigan, state environmental officials said the air “is unhealthy for sensitive groups.”The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services advised people in the state to check the Air Quality Index regularl...

Should you push over these stacks of rocks? Here's what NPS says you should do

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:22:18 GMT

YOSEMITE, Calif. (KSEE/KGPE) - Have you ever passed a tower of rocks perfectly balanced on one another while hiking and felt the urge to knock it over? Depending on where you are, that might not be the best idea. Officials at Yosemite National Park recently encouraged visitors to dismantle these man-made rock stacks, known as cairns, should they come across them within the park. According to park rangers, "leave no trace" ethics states that when recreating in wilderness spaces, the goal is to leave no signs of human impact on the land so as to respect the other creatures living in it.And while the effort and aesthetics of these rock cairns may seem too precious to ruin, oversized cairns are a mark of human impact and are distracting in a wilderness setting. It was a popular national monument, until it was robbed to extinction Officials also say building them disturbs small insects, reptiles, and microorganisms that live on the underside of these rocks.Not every cairn should be de...

Pregnancies can be affected by the oppressive heat

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:22:18 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) — Our weather department's commitment during severe weather events is to keep you both informed and safe. This current heatwave would be classified as a severe weather situation given the oppressive heat that has affected all of us.Previous writings have focused on how heat affects humans as well as its impact on cats and dogs. Today we take its effect on humans a step further. How is the heat affecting those who are pregnant?Extreme heat can create problems for pregnant women (Courtesy: Getty Images)The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention suggest that pregnant women stand to suffer the effects of heat exhaustion and/or heat stress sooner than non-pregnant women. It's not that difficult to understand why. The pregnancy forces their bodies to work harder to cool down, not only for the pregnant woman but also for the baby.Negative effects from oppressive heat during a pregnancyThe CDC goes a step further in its analysis by offering that pregnant women dehydrat...

South St. Paul man dead in Eagan crash after driving wrong way on I-35E

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:22:18 GMT

A 28-year-old South St. Paul man, who authorities say was under the influence, died Saturday night after driving the wrong way on I-35E and hitting another vehicle.Nraughli Vang began driving north in the southbound lane upon entering the freeway near Cliff Road shortly after midnight, according to the State Patrol. Almost immediately, his 2000 Toyota Celica crashed head-on with a GMC Yukon SUV that was hauling a boat.Vang was pronounced dead at Regions Hospital.Three people in the SUV were taken to Regions Hospital with life-threatening injuries. These included the driver, Nancy Ann Heideman, 60, along with Randy Jay Heideman, 57, and Desirae Ann Heideman, 25, all of Albert Lea.Related ArticlesCrime & Public Safety | Pedestrian struck and killed by a vehicle early Sunday in Forest Lake Crime & Public Safety | Fargo police officer dies, two others in critical condition following street shootout Crime & Public Safety | Woodbury m...