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Suspect in Natalee Holloway’s 2005 disappearance in Aruba revealed her fate as part of plea deal

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 09:32:19 GMT

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) — The chief suspect in the 2005 disappearance of Natalee Holloway had to say what happened to her as part of a plea deal on charges he tried to extort money from Holloway’s mother years later, a judge said Wednesday.The disclosure came during a plea and sentencing hearing for Joran van der Sloot, who is accused of trying to get money from Holloway’s mother in exchange for revealing the location of her daughter’s body.Van der Sloot pleaded guilty to extortion and wire fraud charges. An attorney who represented Holloway’s mother during the alleged extortion said earlier that the plea agreement called for the Dutch citizen to provide more information about what happened to Holloway.Van der Sloot is not charged in Holloway’s death. But before he was sentenced, Beth Holloway made a statement saying van der Sloot had acknowledged murdering her daughter.Holloway went missing during a high school graduation trip with classmates. She was last seen leaving a bar wi...

Belgium’s far right capitalizes on migration after terror attack 

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 09:32:19 GMT

BRUSSELS — The man who shot and killed two Swedish football fans in Brussels Monday night had been living in Belgium despite having a failed asylum petition, which the country’s far right is now eager to point out. The Flemish far-right party Vlaams Belang started circulating an ad on Facebook Tuesday pointing out Abdessalem Lassoued, a 45-year-old Tunisian man who was killed by police that morning, was denied asylum and was subject to an order to leave the country. The terror attack by an undocumented migrant, who was under authorities’ scrutiny for multiple criminal allegations, plays into Vlaams Belang’s hands ahead of Belgium’s national and regional elections in June next year, in which migration is expected to be a key topic. “Why was this coward terrorist not arrested and expulsed to his country of origin?” the message read. It gathered close to a quarter of a million views only a day later, according to Meta’s library listing political ads on ...

France’s pro-Palestine protest ban is OK, top court rules

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 09:32:19 GMT

The top French court on Wednesday ruled that pro-Palestine demonstrations can still be banned in the country, rejecting an appeal from an organization defending the Palestinian cause in France.But the court stated that local authorities “alone” should evaluate individual cases for potential risks to public order.On Friday, Palestine Action Committee — a French-based pro-Palestinian organization — had filed an appeal to the French Council of State asking for the suspension of Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin’s instruction to regional leaders to prohibit pro-Palestine protests. It said the government’s move was “a further step in the radicalization of the French state against any support for the Palestinians.”The organization calls on “all activists of the cause, all free spirits, to react and fight so that we can express, together, our support for the glorious Palestinian resistance in the face of a criminal and implacable enemy.”Since Hamas militants launche...

Small plane that crashed into New Hampshire lake had started to climb from descent, report says

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 09:32:19 GMT

GILFORD, N.H. (AP) — A small plane that crashed into Lake Winnipesaukee in New Hampshire began to climb from a descent before it headed down again, the National Transportation Safety Board said in a preliminary report.The body of the pilot, the only person on board, was recovered the day after the Sept. 30 crash. The wreckage of the Cessna 150 plane was found in about 57-foot-deep (17-meter-deep) water, the board said in its report, issued late Monday afternoon.The pilot was not named in the report. He was identified by the state Fish and Game Department as Robert Ashe, of West Ossipee, New Hampshire. The plane was registered Ashe, according to Federal Aviation Administration records.The NTSB said the pilot had departed from the Rhode Island T.F. Green International Airport in Providence at about 6:10 p.m. on Sept. 30 and was destined for the Laconia Municipal Airport in Gilford, which is near the lake. The pilot entered a right downwind leg of the traffic pattern for the runway at ...

Donald Trump told to keep volume down after getting animated at New York civil fraud trial

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 09:32:19 GMT

By JENNIFER PELTZ and MICHAEL R. SISAK (Associated Press)NEW YORK (AP) — A judge warned Donald Trump and others at his New York civil fraud trial to keep their voices down Wednesday after the former president threw up his hands in frustration and spoke aloud to his lawyers while a witness was testifying against him.Judge Arthur Engoron made the admonition after Trump conferred animatedly with his lawyers at the defense table during real estate appraiser Doug Larson’s second day of testimony at the Manhattan trial.State lawyer Kevin Wallace asked Engoron to ask the defense to “stop commenting during the witness’ testimony,” adding that the “exhortations” were audible on the witness’ side of the room. The judge then asked everyone to keep their voices down, “particularly if it’s meant to influence the testimony.”The 2024 Republican frontrunner was in court for a second straight day Wednesday, watching the tria...

Patriots QB Mac Jones sticking with routine despite early-season struggles

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 09:32:19 GMT

FOXBORO — Through better or worse — and it’s been a lot of the latter so far this season — Patriots QB Mac Jones is sticking with his process.Jones, who hasn’t thrown a touchdown pass since Week 3 and has five interceptions in that span of time, was asked Wednesday whether he needs to change his weekly routine.Related ArticlesNew England Patriots | How Patriots could replace struggling offensive starter New England Patriots | Bill Belichick isn’t telling Bills how Patriots plan to use Malik Cunningham New England Patriots | Patriots-Raiders film review: Mac Jones’ offense proving beyond repair despite improvement New England Patriots | Mac Jones details what he saw on Patriots costly last-minute safety New England Patriots | Important Patriots QB question remains a mystery It seemed like Jones had bottomed out as an NFL quarterback after a 2022 season that saw him go 6-8 as a starter wh...

Commuter snapshot: Most workers hit the roads as costs increase

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 09:32:19 GMT

By Elizabeth Renter | NerdWalletPeople who drive to work day in and day out have likely grown weary of hearing about the growth (and then partial reversal) of working from home. The rising costs of their commute no doubt add insult to injury.The share of people working from home increased dramatically in 2020 and remains higher now than before the pandemic. But the overwhelming majority of U.S. employees — 77% of them — still commute. That’s 124 million workers on the road in 2022, according to recently released American Community Survey data from the U.S. Census Bureau. This is at a time when vehicle ownership costs are up considerably.In-person workers are less likely to be high earners. Jobs in lower-earning service and manufacturing industries can’t be done remotely like those in many tech and professional fields. Lower relative wages make increased commuting costs tough to handle (along with sharing the road again with higher-earning workers getting called back to their perk-ri...

5 things we learned in Chicago Bulls’ 106-102 preseason loss, including Torrey Craig subbing in for a struggling Patrick Williams

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 09:32:19 GMT

The Chicago Bulls went down to the preseason wire again on Tuesday, dropping a 106-102 loss to the Toronto Raptors after missing two key chances to go ahead in the final minute.The Bulls will play one final preseason game, hosting the Minnesota Timberwolves on Thursday before their season opener against the Oklahoma City Thunder on Oct. 25 at the United Center.Here are five things we learned from Tuesday’s game:1. Torrey Craig stood out as an early sub for struggling Patrick Williams.Patrick Williams turned the ball over twice in the first three minutes of the game before coach Billy Donovan yanked him out of the rotation. He returned to the court in the second quarter where he sank a 3-pointer and grabbed a rebound, but continued to struggle throughout the second half.Donovan originally planned to play Williams much deeper into the first quarter, but felt frustrated enough with his early play to pull the forward out to administer corrections.“I just thought there were...

House speaker live updates | Jim Jordan appears headed for defeat in second round of voting

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 09:32:19 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — Rep. Jim Jordan appeared headed for defeat in a second round of balloting for speaker on Wednesday, failing to convince his Republican detractors to support him to replace the ousted Kevin McCarthy.Jordan lost 20 Republican votes in the first round of balloting Tuesday and appeared likely to lose even more on Wednesday.Jim Jordan’s rapid rise has been cheered by Trump and the far rightHow the vote for a new speaker worksScalise ends bid to become speaker as holdouts refuse to back himMcCarthy was an early architect of the GOP majority that became his downfallJordan appears to be losing Republican support from Tuesday’s vote for House speaker, but he has picked up a couple of new backers.On Wednesday, Jordan gained Rep. Doug LaMalfa of California, who cast a protest vote for Kevin McCarthy on Tuesday, as well as Rep. Gus Bilirakis of Florida, who was absent.Twenty House Republicans voted against Jordan for House speaker on Tuesday, and his number...

Canadian man with relatives in Gaza says his loved ones are starving, need water

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 09:32:19 GMT

An Ontario man says his father and other relatives are on the brink of starvation in Gaza and violence has broken out during scrambles for scarce essential supplies. Moayed Salim says his 66-year-old-year Canadian father, who was born in Gaza, moved last year to the Palestinian territory in his retirement and has been stuck there ever since the Israel-Hamas war broke out. Salim says his father has registered with the Canadian embassy and is hoping to be able to leave Gaza but his family might run out of food and water before then. He says another relative has told him a nearby bakery that was her only source of food was bombed last night and she has seen brutal fights break out over single bottles of water. Salim, who lives in London, Ont., is among the Canadians with family in Gaza who have been calling for the evacuation of their loved ones from the region and for humanitarian aid to be allowed in to the sealed-off territory. American President Joe Biden announced today that Israe...