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Greece and Turkey seek fresh start to bilateral relations

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:39:29 GMT

ATHENS — Greece and Turkey agreed on a fresh start in their bilateral relationship following the recent thaw driven by the deadly earthquakes earlier this year.Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, both recently re-elected, met this week for the first time in 16 months and agreed to build on the “positive momentum” that currently prevails between the long-estranged neighbors. Meeting on the sidelines of the July 11-12 NATO summit in Vilnius, they pledged to “activate multiple channels of communication” between the two governments.The two sides will hold a High-Level Cooperation Council in Thessaloniki this fall, according to a joint statement. The council first met in 2010, but its last session was in 2016.Despite being NATO allies, Athens and Ankara have been at odds for decades over a number of bilateral squabbles, including quarrels over maritime boundaries, overlapping claims to their continental shelves and the long-running Cyprus ...

‘I’d be careful what I ate’: Biden quips about potential Prigozhin poisoning

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:39:29 GMT

Yevgeny Prigozhin might want to watch out for any poisoning attempts by Russian President Vladimir Putin, President Joe Biden joked during a press conference on Thursday.“If I were he I’d be careful what I ate. I’d keep my eye on my menu,” Biden said during a joint press conference with Finnish President Sauli Niinistö in Helsinki.Biden was asked whether the Wagner leader’s attempted coup last month could raise new concerns about Putin taking drastic new measures in Russia’s war on Ukraine. He responded that he was not aware of Prigozhin’s whereabouts or his current relationship to Putin, and jokingly advised Prigozhin to remain on high alert for potential poisoning.“But all kidding aside, who knows,” Biden continued. “I don’t know, I don’t think any of us know for certain what the future of Prigozhin is in Russia.”

Lawyer previously charged for sexual assaults in Charlestown arraigned on charges for similar assaults in North End

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:39:29 GMT

A New Jersey man charged in connection with a series of sexual assaults in Charlestown in the 2000s was arraigned on additional charges stemming from assaults that happened in the North End during the same window of time.The charges Matthew Nilo, 35, now face include one count of rape, one count of aggravated rape, three counts of assault with intent to rape and two counts of indecent assault and battery, according to Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office. On Thursday, a judge ordered he be held on $50,000 cash bail. The decision came nearly a month after Nilo’s June 15 release, when he posted $500,000 bail.The latest charges stem from five attacks on four women in the North End. One of the victims was attacked twice, 11 days apart. Authorities said the attacks occurred in January 2007, July 2007, January 2008 and July 2008.Prosecutors say DNA evidence links Nilo to the attacks. His lawyer is questioning the legality of how the DNA evidence was obtained.Nilo previous...

Dalen Terry flashes his playmaking potential, but the Chicago Bulls guard’s poor shooting remains a concern

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:39:29 GMT

The first three games of the NBA Summer League have created more questions than answers for the Chicago Bulls when it comes to finding a fit for 2022 first-round draft pick Dalen Terry.After averaging only 5.6 minutes in 38 games as a rookie, Terry’s goal this season is obvious: get on the court. That campaign began last week in Las Vegas, where Terry was labeled the leader of a young Bulls group competing in the annual summer tournament.Summer league didn’t get off to the start Terry hoped for — even before he reached Las Vegas. Terry suffered a collision to the face in the Bulls’ final practice before departing, which he later told reporters resulted in a broken nose.Although the injury wasn’t considered serious, the Bulls medical team asked Terry to wear a protective mask during summer league games. That lasted all of one quarter before Terry ditched it.“My peripheral wasn’t the best, it was kind of messing me up,” Terry told the me...

Biden proclaims NATO alliance ‘more united than ever’ as he celebrates newest member Finland

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:39:29 GMT

By SEUNG MIN KIM, CHRIS MEGERIAN and JARI TANNER (Associated Press)HELSINKI (AP) — President Joe Biden said he and other NATO leaders showed the world that the military alliance emerged “more united than ever” this week as he on Thursday capped a European trip meant to demonstrate the force of the international coalition against Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The allies “understand that this fight is not only a fight for the future of Ukraine,” Biden said, noting that it’s also about sovereignty, security and freedom throughout eastern Europe and the world. Though Ukraine’s demand for an explicit path to NATO membership remained elusive, Biden emphasized that agreements with other countries in the alliance would support Kyiv’s long-term security even without its entry into NATO. At a news conference with Finnish President Sauli Niinistö, Biden pledged that the United States’ commitment to NATO would not waver, despite t...

Kerry grilled on Climate Office; sparks fly over ‘private jet’ use

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:39:29 GMT

This could finally be the day Climate boss John Kerry thaws his budget out. To what degree we’ll find out as the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Oversight and Accountability grills him. Follow along below and stay here for updates and a full report:10 a.m. — Chair Rep. Brian Mast (R-Fla.) just started the meeting and didn’t hold back on Kerry has “managed to avoid oversight and accountability.”Rep. Jason Crow (D-Colo.) jumped in next saying global warming will drive up bills and put Americans at risk, taking a softer tone before Kerry speaks.Rep. Michael McCaul (R-Texas) warned Kerry that playing nice with China could prove to be lethal. He’s the chairman of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs and is “deeply concerned” about talks with China. “We don’t have to make concessions before we even get to the table.” He added that this all comes as “an American citizen” Mark Swidan of Texas faces death i...

Ons Jabeur beats Aryna Sabalenka to reach her second Wimbledon final in a row

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:39:29 GMT

WIMBLEDON, England (AP) — Ons Jabeur came back from a set and a break down to defeat Aryna Sabalenka 6-7 (5), 6-4, 6-3 on Thursday and reach the Wimbledon final for the second consecutive year. This will be the third title match for Jabeur in the past five Grand Slam tournaments. The 25-year-old from Tunisia already was the only Arab woman and only North African woman to get to a major final. So far, she is 0-2 at that stage after losing to Elena Rybakina at the All England Club last July and to Iga Swiatek at the U.S. Open last September. The sixth-seeded Jabeur’s victory Thursday, which came by collecting 10 of the last 13 games, prevented the second-seeded Sabalenka from replacing Swiatek at No. 1 in the rankings. Sabalenka came into the match with a 17-1 record at majors in 2023, including a trophy at the Australian Open.Jabeur’s opponent for the championship on Saturday will be Marketa Vondrousova. Vondrousova became the first unseeded women’s finalist at Wimbledon since Billie...

Ghana forcibly deports hundreds of people who had fled extremist violence in Burkina Faso, says UN

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:39:29 GMT

ACCRA, Ghana (AP) — Ghana has forcibly deported hundreds of people fleeing violence from Burkina Faso, the United Nations refugee agency said Thursday. Approximately 251 people were expelled, most of them women and children seeking safety in northern Ghana, according to UNHCR. “It’s not a voluntary repatriation,” Alpha Seydi Ba, senior communications officer for UNHCR, told The Associated Press.In a statement Wednesday, the UN called on Ghana to cease these expulsions “and guarantee access to the territory and asylum to nationals of Burkina Faso seeking international protection.” Under international human rights law, the principle of non-refoulement guarantees that no one should be returned to a country where they would face torture, cruel or degrading treatment, or punishment. The UN’s statement said Ghana was violating the principle. Extremist violence linked to al-Qaida and the Islamic State group has ravaged the West African nation for years, killing thousands ...

Appeals court orders new congressional lines in New York, a potential boon for Democrats

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:39:29 GMT

ALBBANY, N.Y. (AP) — A mid-level state appeals court on Thursday ordered new congressional lines be drawn for New York, a ruling that could benefit Democrats in the 2024 fight for control of the U.S. House.The Appellate Division of the state Supreme Court reversed a lower court and directed a state redistricting commission to start work on new proposed state congressional lines. Democrats are supporting the lawsuit, which seeks to scrap the 2022 lines in New York under which Republicans flipped four congressional seats.Republicans quickly pledged to take the politically charged case to New York’s highest court.“On to the Court of Appeals,” former Republican Rep. John Faso said in a statement. “Democrats want to rig the congressional district lines in their favor. New York State now has more competitive congressional districts than any state in the nation.”The lawsuit was brought on behalf of 10 New York voters who want the state’s Independent Redistricting Commission to submit...

Stock market today: Wall Street rises again as inflation slows

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:39:29 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — Wall Street is adding to its winning week Thursday following the latest signal that inflation is continuing to ease its chokehold on the economy.The S&P 500 was 0.7% higher in afternoon trading and on pace for its seventh winning week in the last nine. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 77 points, or 0.2%, at 34,425, as of 12:32 p.m. Eastern time, and the Nasdaq composite was 1.2% higher as Big Tech stocks led the way.Stocks are building on gains after more data raised hopes that inflation is cooling enough to convince the Federal Reserve to end its blistering run of hikes to interest rates very soon. Inflation at the wholesale level slowed more than expected in June, and prices paid by producers were just 0.1% higher during the month than a year earlier. That’s down from 11.2% inflation last summer.High inflation has been the main reason investors have been fearing a possible recession, because of how high the Federal Reserve has cranked interest rates to g...