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Spain's PM Sanchez to push for 'territorial integrity' for Ukraine

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 15:32:04 GMT

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez (pictured) said on Saturday (25 March) he would push for fair peace in the war in Ukraine that included "territorial integrity" during a state visit to China next week.Sanchez, speaking to journalists at the Ibero-American Summit meeting in the Dominican Republic, said he would discuss peace prospects with Chinese President Xi Jinping, who is trying to position himself as a mediator in the war between Russia and Ukraine."The most important thing ... is that when this peace is reached in Ukraine, it will be fair and lasting ... and when we talk about fair, I mean that the territorial integrity of Ukraine, which has been violated by Putin, is respected," Sanchez said in a news conference.Spain, a NATO member whose foreign policy is closely aligned with the United States, is a staunch ally of Ukraine and will assume the presidency of the Council of the European Union in July.Last month, Beijing outlined a 12-point peace plan and called for a compreh...

Ski resorts in California got so much snow they’re going to stay open through June

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 15:32:04 GMT

By Zoe Sottile | CNNThe slopes are open for summer, at least in California.Several California ski resorts have announced they have received so much snow that they plan to stay open until well into the summer months.Mammoth Mountain, a popular four-season resort located in the Eastern Sierra mountains, announced earlier this week it would be open for skiing at least until the end of July. This is the earliest in the year the resort has ever announced it would be open so late, communications director Lauren Burke told CNN over email.RELATED: Top 10 historic Sierra snow seasonsBurke said that the resort was just 5 inches away from breaking its season snowfall record of 668″ inches, set in 2010.“We aim to keep lifts spinning until as long as conditions allow, which definitely could go into August this season,” she wrote. “Spring skiing and riding conditions are going to be the best we’ve ever seen with the mountain in mid-winter form.”Snow blankets Ma...

FDIC announces First-Citizens Bank & Trust Company to purchase assets of Silicon Valley Bank

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 15:32:04 GMT

By Mark Thompson and Liz Enochs, CNNFirst Citizens Bank is buying most of the business of Silicon Valley Bank, the US tech lender that failed earlier this month.The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) said in a statement late Sunday it had agreed that First-Citizens Bank & Trust Company would buy all of SVB’s deposits and loans that regulators had transferred to a bridge bank in the wake of its collapse.Seventeen former branches of SVB will begin operating as “Silicon Valley Bank, a division of First Citizens Bank,” on Monday, First Citizens said. SVB customers should continue to use their current branch until they receive notice from First Citizens that systems have been converted to allow full service at its wider branch network, FDIC added.RELATED: Could the Silicon Valley Bank collapse be a good thing for Bay Area homebuyers?SVB was shut down by regulators on Friday, March 10, after clients withdrew $42 billion in a single day. It was the second-la...

Bridge: March 27, 2023

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 15:32:04 GMT

Having canceled five of its 10-day North American Championships in a row due to COVID-19, the ACBL has now staged four straight. The Fall NABC was held in Phoenix in November.In the Super Senior Pairs for players age 75 and higher, Bruce Ferguson was today’s East. Against South’s four hearts, West, Brenda Keller, led a trump. Declarer drew trumps and next let the jack of diamonds ride.Suppose East takes the queen and returns a spade. South will play low, win in dummy and lose only to the ace of diamonds, making five. But Ferguson won with the ACE of diamonds and led a spade.DISCARDSouth not unnaturally took the ace and passed the nine of diamonds, hoping for three diamond tricks and a spade discard. Ferguson produced the queen and cashed his king of spades, holding South to 10 tricks.Ferguson-Keller scored well here — and won the event. I suspect that at many tables, North played at four hearts after a transfer auction and was helped when East led a high club.DAILY...

Word Game: March 27, 2023

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 15:32:04 GMT

TODAY’S WORD — CORPSE (CORPSE: KORPS: A dead body, especially of a human being.)Average mark 15 wordsTime limit 25 minutesCan you find 18 or more words in CORPSE? The list will be published tomorrow.SATURDAY’S WORD — JAMBOREES jamb jeer aero aerobe amber arms arose major mare maser mere mesa more mores bare base baser beam bear beer berm besom bore bream obese ream roam robe rose ease ember erase erose saber same seam sear seem seer sere smear soar sober somber some sora sorb soreTo 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...

Horoscopes March 27, 2023: Mariah Carey, pioneer your way into the future

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 15:32:04 GMT

CELEBRITIES BORN ON THIS DAY: Fergie, 48; Nathan Fillion, 52; Mariah Carey, 54; Pauley Perrette, 54.Fergie (Photo by Evan Agostini/Invision/AP) Happy Birthday: Express yourself, demonstrate your intentions and invite individuals into your circle this year who have something to contribute to your goal. Your dedication and determination will help you finish what you start if you don’t let anxiety or anger hold you back. Pioneer your way into the future by thinking outside the box and selling your beliefs and concepts passionately. Your numbers are 6, 12, 18, 23, 31, 36, 44.ARIES (March 21-April 19): Research and preparation will set your mind at ease. Knowing what you are up against will factor into your success. Choose your words wisely and share with like-minded people. Don’t lead someone on with a false gesture or empty promise. 4 starsTAURUS (April 20-May 20): You’ll charm others with your insight and progress. Concentrate on getting your intentions up and r...

Burkina Faso suspends France 24 for interview with jihadi

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 15:32:04 GMT

DAKAR, Senegal (AP) — Burkina Faso’s military junta has suspended French broadcaster, France 24, for interviewing a top jihadi rebel, a government spokesman announced Monday. The broadcasting of France 24’s programs will be blocked throughout Burkina Faso because of an interview the outlet did with the leader of an al-Qaida aligned group, Jean-Emmanuel Ouedraogo said in a statement.“It is with regret that the government discovered two weeks ago an interview with the ‘chief of al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb’ on France 24, part of the France Medias Monde group. Without contesting the freedom of the channel’s editorial choices, the government nevertheless questions the ethics that govern the professional practice of journalism on France 24,” he said.By describing the views of the head of the rebel group, France 24 had acted as a communication agency for the jihadis and gave them space to legitimize their actions, he said. On March 6, France 24 discussed on air, the e...

Greenland to stay in daylight saving time forever

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 15:32:04 GMT

COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) — Residents of Greenland have switched to daylight saving time and moved their clocks one hour forward this weekend for the very last time.Unlike most of Europe, Greenlanders will leave their clocks untouched come autumn when daylight saving time ends. While Europe and the U.S. debates whether to stick to the twice-yearly practice, Greenland – a vast Danish semi-independent territory in the Arctic – has resolved to perennially remain only three hours behind Copenhagen and most other European countries instead of four. Greenland’s parliament, Inatsisartut, voted to stick to daylight saving time year-round on Nov. 24 last year. Officials say it will give Greenlanders another hour of daylight in the afternoons and more time to do business with Europe and farther afield.“The shift of time zone marks an exciting new beginning, an equal connection to North America and Europe, and an opportunity to slow down in a fast-paced world,” Visit Greenland...

More than 180 Rohingya refugees arrive on Indonesian beach

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 15:32:04 GMT

LHOKSEUMAWE, Indonesia (AP) — More than 180 disoriented Rohingya Muslims, some of whom needed medical attention, arrived in the early morning in Indonesia’s northernmost province of Aceh, an official said Monday.“From the information we received, the boat took them and told them that they have arrived at their destination and left them at the beach,” said Andy Rahmansyah, East Aceh police chief.He said the authorities are still collecting more information and giving medical aid to some of the refugees.Ali Hussein, one of the refugees, said the boat took them from Bangladesh before it fled and left them in the dark after the group disembarked to the beach.“It was difficult there. When we were gathered, we got offered a rate for the boat and we agreed to go to a far place, whether it is Indonesia or Malaysia,” Hussein said.The group of 184, including women and children, arrived by fishing boat at Kuala Matang Peulawi, a coastal area in Peureulak subdistrict in East Aceh.More than 700,...

UN expert advising IOC gives views on Russians at Olympics

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 15:32:04 GMT

GENEVA (AP) — Russian athletes who have actively served in the military invasion of Ukraine should be allowed to return to international sports if they did not take part in war crimes, according to a United Nations expert advising the International Olympic Committee.The U.N. special rapporteur for cultural rights, Alexandra Xanthaki, said late Sunday only Russian military members implicated in “allegations of war crimes, genocide, crimes against humanity or propaganda for war” should be denied neutral status to compete in international sports ahead of the 2024 Paris Olympics.Xanthaki angered Ukrainian athletes who took part in an IOC-hosted call to consult them ahead of an Olympic announcement due Tuesday to update guidance for sports bodies 16 months before the opening of the Paris Games.Ukrainian government and sports officials want the IOC to ban all Russians from the 2024 Games and claim most of the country’s recent Olympic medalists were affiliated with the military.Xanthaki wr...