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MEPs condemn Hamas attack on Israel and call for a humanitarian pause 

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:30:31 GMT

Parliament has condemned Hamas’ despicable terrorist attacks against Israel while expressing serious concern over the humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip, Plenary session, AFET.In the resolution adopted on Thursday with 500 votes in favour, 21 against and 24 abstentions, MEPs strongly condemn the brutal attacks, express their support to Israel and its people and underline the need to “eliminate the terrorist organisation Hamas”. They also call for the immediate release of all hostages kidnapped by Hamas and recognise Israel’s right to self-defence “as enshrined in and constrained by international law”. As such, any actions by Israel must strictly comply with international humanitarian law, the text states. Parliament also stresses that both the attacks by Hamas and the Israeli response risk reinforcing a cycle of violence in the region. MEPs call for a “humanitarian pause” in the fighting and stress that attacking civilians and civilian infrastructure, including UN workers, med...

Bridge: Oct. 24, 2023

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:30:31 GMT

“Millard is a sweet guy,” a club player told me, “but he’s got only one oar in the water. He said he had an earache, and I asked him whether it was inside or out. He went out the door, came back in and told me it was both.”Millard Pringle tends to get lost in the maze of bridge “rules.” He was declarer at today’s four hearts, and West led the queen of clubs. Millard ruffed the second club and next let the queen of trumps ride. East casually played low.SECOND TRUMP“If Millard leads a second trump to dummy’s jack,” my friend said, “East wins and leads a third trump, and when he takes the king of spades, he cashes the ace of clubs. Millard also loses a diamond for down one.“But Millard next led a trump to the ace. He ruffed the king of clubs and wound up losing a trump, a spade and a club.”“Well defended, well played,” I said. “But I wonder why Millard didn’t finesse in trumps ag...

Horoscopes Oct. 24, 2023: B.D. Wong, adjust to the journey that beckons you

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:30:31 GMT

CELEBRITIES BORN ON THIS DAY: Shenae Grimes, 34; Eliza Taylor, 34; B.D. Wong, 63; Kevin Kline, 76.Happy Birthday: Pick up the pace and take care of unfinished business. Clearing a passage that opens you to new and exciting adventures will motivate you to be an overachiever this year. Let your imagination lead the way and your discipline carry you to your desired destination. Create opportunities in your mind and adjust to the journey that beckons you. Make a sound relationship a priority. Your numbers are 3, 8, 14, 21, 27, 36, 48.ARIES (March 21-April 19): Focus on what’s important to you. Do your own thing and stay out of sight. You’ll gain ground if you have tunnel vision and follow your heart. Refuse to let anyone bully you into taking on something that benefits them more than you. 3 starsTAURUS (April 20-May 20): Don’t hesitate; take the initiative and reach for the stars. You’ve got what it takes to make a difference and to sink your teeth into something...

Word Game: Oct. 24, 2023

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:30:31 GMT

TODAY’S WORD — ENTREAT (ENTREAT: en-TREET: To plead or ask urgently.)Average mark 18 wordsTime limit 35 minutesCan you find 25 or more words in ENTREAT? The list will be published tomorrow.YESTERDAY’S WORD — APOSTASY assay atop pass past pasta pasty post posy oast says soap soapy spat spay spot stay stop tapas taps toss typoTo purchase the Word Game book, visit WordGameBooks.com. Order it now for just $5 while supplies last!RULES OF THE GAME:1. Words must be of four or more letters.2. Words that acquire four letters by the addition of “s,” such as “bats” or “dies,” are not allowed.3. Additional words made by adding a “d” or an “s” may not be used. For example, if “bake” is used, “baked” or “bakes” are not allowed, but “bake” and “baking” are admissible.4. Proper nouns, slang words, or vulgar or sexually explicit words are not allowed.Contact Word Game creator Kathleen Saxe at [email protected].

Next season, you may be able to take your flu vaccine at home

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:30:31 GMT

By Meg Tirrell | CNNThe US Food and Drug Administration is reviewing an application for the nasal spray flu vaccine FluMist to be able to be self-administered at home, drugmaker AstraZeneca said Tuesday.The vaccine, the only nasal spray option against flu, has been on the market in the United States since 2003. AstraZeneca has asked the FDA to allow adults ages 18 to 49 to be able to give themselves the vaccine, or to give it to children as young as age 2, citing a “usability study” showing people can do it properly without a health care provider present. If approved, it would be the first flu vaccine cleared for self-administration.Patients would still need to go through an online pharmacy system to order the vaccine, which would then be shipped to their home in temperature-controlled packaging, AstraZeneca’s Dr. Lisa Glasser told CNN.The hope is that a self-administered flu vaccine option could increase uptake; while the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends eve...

Alleged ‘Red Bull thief’ behind bars after 20+ Bay Area thefts

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:30:31 GMT

A man is accused of stealing over $14,000 worth of Red Bull, vodka and other merchandise over the course of more than 20 visits to a Vallejo liquor store.Toulon Thurston, 33, had reportedly made a habit of visiting a business on the 900 block of Admiral Callaghan Lane, often stealing multiple cases of energy drinks and bottles of New Amsterdam vodka. According to a social media post by the Vallejo Police Department, authorities arrived at the store Oct. 15 and received information about “the Red Bull Thief,” along with his alleged getaway car and getaway driver.Authorities located Thurston’s vehicle near Florida Street and Yuba Street. A store employee arrived at the scene and identified Thurston as well as another suspect, identified in the Solano County list of inmates as 37-year-old Teaawonna Rucks.Police retrieved Red Bulls and liquor bottles from the vehicle and handed them over to the liquor store.A records check, according to authorities, revealed that Thurston had a $25,000 ...

Vigilant drivers report Highway 1 wrong-way DUI driver

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:30:31 GMT

RIO DEL  MAR — A 35-year-old Modesto woman was arrested on suspicion of DUI over the weekend after driving the wrong way on Highway 1 and later crashing into a pole on private property.Multiple eyewitnesses called 911, reporting the driver’s apparently erratic behavior. The California Highway Patrol began investigating shortly before 5 p.m. Saturday, heading to the Rio Del Mar exit of southbound Highway 1. One caller reported seeing the driver, in a gray 2016 Honda Pilot, get onto the highway headed northbound in the southbound lanes via the offramp and another reported the Honda colliding with a tow truck, according to CHP radio dispatchers.Within less than an hour, CHP officers were responding to a different wrong-way driver report on Highway 17 near Mount Hermon Road, according to radio dispatches.The driver, according to Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Office arrest logs, was teacher Kalyn Cherokee Lee. As of Monday afternoon, Lee was no longer in custody and the Santa Cruz County D...

Alleged charity scam leads to Santa Cruz County rooftop chase

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:30:31 GMT

CAPITOLA — Police arrested a 23-year-old Memphis, Tennessee, man over the weekend after he allegedly fled from the Capitola Mall and over the roof of a nearby business.Initially, officers were called Saturday afternoon to an area outside a mall store for a report that four men were asking for donations and one had used a donor’s phone to transfer a larger-than-negotiated sum. The donor told police that one of the men “transferred WAY more money than authorized,” according to a Capitola Police Department social media post.Of the four men, police were able to track one individual as he reportedly headed off on foot for several hundred yards, crashing through a roof and crossing multiple streets and fences. Ladarius Spears ultimately was taken into custody near the 1600 block of 41st Avenue, police said. Related ArticlesCrime and Public Safety | Alleged ‘Red Bull thief’ behind bars after 20+ Bay Area thefts Crime and Public Safety | Vigilant drivers report Hi...

Disneyland sets opening date for Pixar Place Hotel makeover

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:30:31 GMT

The pixie dust is about to settle on the new Pixar Place Hotel after a nearly two-year makeover of the Paradise Pier Hotel that will bring a fresh splash of Toy Story, Finding Nemo, Coco, the Incredibles and other Pixar characters to the 40-year-old hotel.The Pixar Place Hotel transformation will be complete on Jan. 30 with three new eateries opening at the refreshed hotel before the end of the year.Pixar Place Hotel guest room. (Disney) SEE ALSO: Fried chicken and doughnuts restaurant coming to Disneyland’s Pixar hotel this summerParadise Pier Hotel has remained open during the transformation into the first Pixar-themed hotel in the United States.A new Great Maple restaurant will open in November on the ground floor of the hotel with a menu that includes the restaurant’s signature maple bacon doughnuts along with fried chicken, ribs, fish and breakfast items.Concept art of the Great Maple restaurant coming to the Pixar Place Hotel at the Disneyland resort. (Disneyland) Th...

South Africa wins the toss, opts to bat first against Bangladesh at Cricket World Cup

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:30:31 GMT

MUMBAI, India (AP) — South Africa won the toss and opted to bat against Bangladesh at the Cricket World Cup but will again be without Temba Bavuma, who was again ruled out with an illness. Aiden Markram leads South Africa again in the absence of Bavuma, who also missed its last game against England.South Africa has three wins from its opening four games, rebounding from a shocking loss to lowly-ranked Netherlands with a comprehensive 229-run win over 2019 champion England.Bangladesh, after opening the tournament with a six-wicket win over Afghanistan, has had lopsided losses to New Zealand, England and India.Bangladesh was boosted by the return of mercurial all-rounder and skipper Shakib Al Hasan, who missed the last game against India iwth an injury. Shakib replaced batter Towhid Hridoy in the team’s only change. Reeza Hendricks, who scored a fluent 85 runs from 75 balls against England, will continue to open the batting in Bavuma’s absence. Pacer Lungi Ngidi was also ruled o...