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UK minister in Rwanda to reinforce migrant deportation plan

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 00:50:45 GMT

LONDON (AP) — Britain’s Home Secretary arrived in Rwanda on Saturday for a visit aimed at reinforcing the U.K. government’s commitment to a controversial plan to deport some asylum-seekers to the African country. Ahead of her visit, Suella Braverman said the migration policy “will act as a powerful deterrent against dangerous and illegal journeys.”Britain’s Conservative government wants to stop migrants from reaching the U.K. on risky journeys across the English Channel, and a deportation agreement signed with Rwanda last year was part of measures intended to deter the arrivals. More than 45,000 people arrived in Britain by boat in 2022, compared with 8,500 in 2020. Under the plans, some migrants who arrive in the U.K. in small boats would be flown to Rwanda, where their asylum claims would be processed. Those granted asylum would stay in the African country rather than return to Britain.But the 140 million-pound ($170 million) plan has been mired in legal challeng...

Lights out for Philly’s famed Boathouse Row, for now

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 00:50:45 GMT

The bright lights of Philadelphia’s famed Boathouse Row — long one of the city’s signature nighttime sights — are going dark, at least for now.Outlining a cluster of historic boathouses along the Schuylkill River near the Philadelphia Museum of Art, the twinkly lights reflect off the water and give definition to the unique architecture of each building. “It’s in some ways our postcard shot of Philadelphia,” explained Tara Rasheed of Fairmount Park Conservancy, as indelible as the Liberty Bell or the art museum steps in “Rocky.”Starting Monday, though, the lights will be switched off and taken down as work gets underway on a $2.1 million replacement project. If all goes to plan, a new, upgraded lighting system should be ready for the winter holiday season.The buildings store the long, slender boats used by rowing crews, and have wide garage-door-like bays that open onto ramps that slope down to the water’s edge. Many have steep roofs or Tudor or Victorian-influenced archi...

Range of emotions for residents facing relocation over smelter in Rouyn-Noranda

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 00:50:45 GMT

ROUYN-NORANDA, Que. — An announcement this week that some 200 families would be relocated from a Rouyn-Noranda neighbourhood contaminated by smelter pollution was met with anxiety and concern for those who will be moved out.While some residents of the Notre-Dame neighbourhood, in the city about 630 kilometres north of Montreal, see it as a chance to leave a sector where arsenic emissions from the Horne copper smelter are associated to a higher risk of cancer, others greet the impending move with sadness and anguish.Ginette Bédard has felt the full range of emotions in recent days.Since learning this week she will have to move from the neighbourhood she’s called home for 30 years, she progressed from anxiety to tears to fear.“This doesn’t work for me at all, where am I going to go? At my age? Retired?” said Bédard, a former orderly.The Quebec government announced Thursday it would provide $88.3 million to support the City of Rouyn-Noranda to create a neighbour...

Critics allege group funded by Quebec government spreading transphobic views

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 00:50:45 GMT

MONTREAL — The Quebec government came under fire this week for funding a women’s group that is alleged to have spread transphobic views and targeted trans activists online.On Thursday in the legislature, Jennifer Maccarone of the Liberal Opposition read excerpts of documents that refer to sex change surgeries as a form of “mutilation,” which she said had been published by the group Pour les droits des femmes du Québec (PDF Québec) on its online platforms.Maccarone then questioned the minister responsible for the status of women, Martine Biron, on the fact that the Coalition Avenir Québec government has been funding the group, which she said also encourages trans people to reverse their transition.“The government is using public funds to subsidize an organization, PDF Québec, who are openly transphobic,” Maccarone said. The $143,000 given to the group for the 2022-23 fiscal year goes directly against the province’s action plan to combat homophobia ...

St. Paul DFL to caucus Sunday with all 7 council seats on the ballot

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 00:50:45 GMT

Believe it or not, election season has begun in St. Paul.All seven seats on the St. Paul City Council will be on the November ballot, arranged by ward. The races officially are non-partisan, but that doesn’t stop most candidates from seeking the endorsement of the Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party. The first step in that process unfolds at 1 p.m. Sunday when the St. Paul DFL’s citywide precinct caucuses get underway.The caucuses, held at high schools throughout the city, serve as a starting point to choose delegates to the ward conventions, where the party will endorse candidates.In three wards, where council incumbents Mitra Jalali, Rebecca Noecker and Nelsie Yang so far appear to be unopposed for re-election, the conventions will be held directly after the Sunday caucuses.In Wards 1, 3, 5 and 7, where a total of 12 candidates are seeking the DFL endorsement, ward conventions will be held throughout April. There are no incumbents in those races as Amy Brendmoen, Chris Tolbe...

Sunny, but chilly Saturday in the forecast for St. Louis

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 00:50:45 GMT

ST. LOUIS -- Saturday will be sunny, but not very warm. Temperatures will be 25-30 degrees below normal. Highs today struggle to make it above freezing and wind chills are in the teens and 20s. Clouds increase this afternoon and evening. We could see a few flurries, especially north of the I-70 corridor. Winds slowly ease overnight, but lows again fall to the low to mid 20s. Tomorrow, with full sunshine, lighter winds, and temperatures around 40. It will feel better than today. Dry for Monday as spring begins. Rain chances increase Tuesday through Friday along with warmer temperatures. 

Battlehawks players visit cancer center patients

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 00:50:45 GMT

ST. LOUIS, Mo. - The Battlehawks visit patients Friday at the Siteman Cancer Center in the Central West End. That event included players like Jon Alexander, Hakeem Butler, Chris Cooper, Brandon Sebastian, and Ben Deluca. Former NFL Rams players Brandon Williams and Derek Stanley were also there.The team visited with kids and adults. They also took pictures, handed out team swag, and gift bags.

Person shot at Florissant Walgreens Friday

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 00:50:45 GMT

FLORISSANT, Mo. -- A person was shot at a Florissant Walgreens just before 10 p.m. Friday night. St. Louis County police are investigating.The shooting happened at the drugstore on Old Halls Ferry Road. The person shot was rushed to a hospital. We're working to get an update on the condition of the victim.

Funeral for fallen Hermann officer this weekend

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 00:50:45 GMT

HERMANN, Mo. -- People in Hermann, Missouri are coming together to remember the life of Detective Sergeant Mason Griffith. He was gunned down in the line of duty last Sunday.Another officer was also shot. The public visitation and funeral services are planned for this weekend.Investigators say Griffith and New Haven police officer Adam Sullentrup were at a Casey's gas station last Sunday in Hermann when they tried to take Kenneth Simpson into custody on outstanding warrants. Both officers were shot and Griffith died, leaving behind his wife and two children.The community has been so supportive of these officers and their families. The public is invited to attend the visitation.Police have arranged a public visitation for Griffith from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. tomorrow at Owensville High School, which is at 3336 Highway 19. Funeral services will follow around 2 p.m.Following that is a procession to a local cemetery. Police offered the following directions on the procession:The group will lea...

Inside Nuggets’ team meeting that set stakes for Denver’s stretch run: “Who do we want to be?”

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 00:50:45 GMT

NEW YORK – DeAndre Jordan has been in the NBA long enough to know what to divulge and what to keep behind closed doors.In the aftermath of the Nuggets’ loss Tuesday at Toronto, extending what was then a season-long four-game losing streak, most, if not all, of Jordan, Jeff Green, Ish Smith and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope spoke up in the postgame locker room. Their decades-long experience gave them the gravitas to do so, especially in a locker room where its figurehead, Nikola Jokic, isn’t one for fiery speeches.All four spoke to The Post, with varying levels of candor, about what was said.“There’s always a time and place, and I just think that was the time,” Green said. “… The feeling was just there.”Jordan, who’s fallen out of the rotation as the postseason nears but remains a pillar of the locker room, did disclose one of the motivations to raise their collective voice.“We’re in a great position to do something special,” Jordan said. “It’s supposed to be hard.”If the team’s eld...