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EU, Sweden are responsible for official’s release from Iran, commissioner says

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:57:26 GMT

Sweden and the European Union are responsible for securing EU official Johan Floderus’ release from an Iranian prison, European Commissioner Ylva Johansson said Tuesday. “Sweden and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs are responsible for securing his release. But the EU also has an employer’s responsibility and the EU has an opportunity to exert pressure,” Johansson told Sweden’s national public broadcaster SVT on Tuesday. She added she had raised the issue with Josep Borrell, the EU’s foreign affairs chief.On Tuesday, Borrell, the EU’s top diplomat, confirmed the 33-year-old Swedish citizen who works for the EU’s diplomatic corps has been held captive in Iran’s Evin prison for more than 500 days.Johansson — who was Floderus’ boss for one-and-a-half years — first found out he was imprisoned in Iran last spring. “I was extremely scared, sad and worried. I still am. No one thought something like this could happen....

One hospitalized, 20 others slightly injured after pier collapses on University of Wisconsin campus

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:57:26 GMT

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Part of a pier where dozens of University of Wisconsin students and others were celebrating Labor Day collapsed into a lake, leaving one person hospitalized and slightly injuring about 20 others, officials said.Video shot from Lake Mendota’s shoreline shows that a part of the metal pier just east of the Union Terrace stage on the Madison campus collapsed Monday afternoon, sending some people falling into the water.The Madison Fire Department said one person was taken to a hospital with non-life-threatening injuries and five others were treated at the scene for minor injuries. UW-Madison Police Officer Jeff Kirchman told the Wisconsin State Journal that “20 or so” had minor injuries, in addition to the person who was hospitalized.“There were way too many kids on the piers. They were packed. There was no warning. All of a sudden it went down and people were in the water,” said Debra Drewek, a retired nurse who was taking pictures at the terra...

Ballot questions face first decision day Wednesday with AG approval on the line

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:57:26 GMT

It’s the first major decision day for ballot questions in Massachusetts.Attorney General Andrea Campbell will make clear Wednesday the initial fate of more than 40 proposed laws and constitutional amendments dealing with everything from rent control to auditing the Legislature.Ballot question backers filed 42 different initiative petitions in early August which Campbell has spent the past month reviewing to see if they meet constitutional muster. Supporters hope to see their ideas on the ballot during the 2024 elections.The questions touch on some of the most debated topics on Beacon Hill — removing the MCAS as a condition for high school graduation, election reform, the classification of app-based workers, and allowing for the unionization of transportation network company drivers.In the weeks since those proposals were submitted, advocates have let loose 55 legal briefs — 32 in favor and 23 in opposition — in an attempt to convince Campbell to either certify or toss aside various ...

Coach of Spain’s World Cup-winning women’s soccer team is fired weeks after victory celebration kiss

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:57:26 GMT

By TALES AZZONI (AP Sports Writer)MADRID (AP) — The coach of Spain’s World Cup-winning women’s soccer team was fired Tuesday, less than three weeks after the victory celebration that led to the suspension of the country’s soccer federation president for kissing a player.The Spanish soccer federation offered no immediate explanation for the dismissal, saying only that Jorge Vilda was “key to the notable growth of women’s soccer” and thanking him for leading the national team to the World Cup title and to No. 2 in the FIFA rankings — its highest ever position.Vilda was among those who at first applauded federation president Luis Rubiales when he refused to resign despite facing widespread criticism for kissing player Jenni Hermoso on the lips without her consent during the title celebrations last month in Sydney.One of Vilda’s assistant coaches, Montse Tomé, was appointed to replace him. She will be the first woman to hold the...

Bruins veteran Brad Marchand sounds like captain material

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:57:26 GMT

The Bruins are without a captain after the retirement of Patrice Bergeron. But if you took in Boston’s first “captain’s practice” on Tuesday and listened to him speak afterward, it was hard to miss the vibe that Brad Marchand just might be the captain-in-waiting.Not that Marchand, now the longest serving Bruin, was about to publicly lobby for the job.“It’s not something I really think about too much. Obviously it’s a really big honor to be in the leadership group in this organization when you look at the guys who have been there before. But we’ve always done it collectively as a group,” said Marchand after an hour-plus session at Warrior Ice Arena. “So regardless of who wears it, it’s a collective thing. Even guys guys without a letters have stepped up through the years. When you lose Bergy and (David Krejci) and that leadership, it’s got to come from the group, and not one certain guy or a couple of guys. It’s got to be from a big gro...

2 charged in driveway slaying of Hamilton man with suspected mob ties

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:57:26 GMT

Hamilton police have charged two people in connection to the March 2020 driveway shooting death of Giorgio Barresi in Stoney Creek.In a release Tuesday, police said Barresi had “historical ties” with the Musitano traditional organized crime group.Brothers Pat and Angelo Musitano were both killed in shootings, Angelo first in 2017, followed by Pat’s murder in 2020.Investigators said Barresi was confronted on his driveway at around 10:45 p.m. on March 2, 2020, by a suspect who shot him several times before walking back to an awaiting getaway vehicle.Police say he died at the scene.“The suspect attended the area in a four-door sedan parked by the intersection of Portofino Place and Lido Drive. It is believed that at least one other individual remained with the suspect vehicle during the incident,” police said.After the shooting, the suspects fled south on Lido Drive.On September 1, 2023, police charged two Toronto men in his killing.Jamal Chemin, 41 and So...

Complaints over campaign comments by Wisconsin Supreme Court justice are dismissed

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:57:26 GMT

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — A state judiciary disciplinary panel has rejected several complaints lodged against Wisconsin Supreme Court Justice Janet Protasiewicz that alleged she violated the judicial code of ethics for comments she made during the campaign. It’s a setback to Republicans who argued those remarks could warrant impeachment.Protasiewicz on Tuesday released a letter from the Wisconsin Judicial Commission informing her that “several complaints” regarding comments she had made during the campaign had been dismissed without action. The commission’s actions are private unless released by one of the parties involved. Protasiewicz received permission from the commission to release its May 31 letter to her, which she then provided to The Associated Press.Protasiewicz’s win in April flipped majority control of Wisconsin’s Supreme Court from conservative to liberal for the first time in 15 years. Democrats heavily backed her campaign, during which Protasiewicz criticized R...

Belarus bans citizens from renewing passports abroad, spreading fear among those who fled repression

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:57:26 GMT

TALLINN, Estonia (AP) — Belarus’ authoritarian president on Tuesday banned citizens from renewing their passports while staying abroad, which could force those who fled the country amid growing repression to return to maintain their travel documents.An estimated 200-300,000 Belarusians have left the country in the last three years since massive protests against an election that returned President Alexander Lukashenko to office led to a harsh crackdown on the political opposition. The election results were widely regarded as manipulated.Lukashenko’s decree stated that a Belarusian passport can only be renewed where the holder was a registered resident before leaving the country.Opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, who fled to Lithuania after challenging Lukashenko in the 2020 election, warned Belarusians, saying, “even if your passport expires, you should not return to your home country if you risk persecution.”Tsikhanouskaya told The Associated Press that Po...

Dangerous rip currents along Atlantic coast spur rescues, at least 8 deaths

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:57:26 GMT

TRENTON, N.J. (AP) — Strong ocean rip currents along the mid-Atlantic coast created hazardous swimming conditions on Tuesday after several deaths were reported and hundreds of other swimmers had to be rescued by lifeguards during the Labor Day holiday weekend.Rip current warnings issued by the National Weather Service remained in effect Tuesday from New York to North Carolina, and that agency also was urging swimmers to use extra caution and only swim in area where lifeguards were present. Swimmers were being kept out of the water in some areas due to very rough conditions or lifeguard shortages, or both.The dangerous currents were spawned by the remnants of hurricanes Franklin and Idalia, officials said. They warned that people caught in a rip current can be swept away from shore very quickly and note the best way to escape is by swimming parallel to the shore instead of towards it.At least three deaths were reported in New Jersey, including a 22-year-old man from the Dominican Rep...

South Korean firm opening copper foil plant in Quebec for use in electric vehicles

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:57:26 GMT

GRANBY, Que. — A new player is entering the Quebec supply chain for electric vehicle batteries.Volta Energy Solutions, a subsidiary of South Korea’s Solus Advanced Materials, will produce copper foil for batteries in Granby, Que., southeast of Montreal.The Quebec government is giving the company a $150-million loan, part of which is forgivable, for the $750-million project that is expected to create 260 jobs. The plant is to produce 25,000 tons of copper sheets per year starting 2026.Quebec Premier François Legault made the announcement today in Granby, saying the project confirms that the province is attracting global leaders in the battery and electric transportation industry.Last month, Ford Motor Company announced a $1.2-billion manufacturing plant in Quebec for components of electric car batteries.This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 5, 2023.The Canadian Press