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Spain’s parliament confirms Pedro Sánchez as prime minister

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:52:37 GMT

Pedro Sánchez won the backing of a majority of lawmakers in Spain’s parliament to form a new government on Thursday, bringing four months of political paralysis in Madrid to an end.The 51-year-old premier prevailed in a vote in Spain’s hyper-fractured, 350-seat parliament, obtaining yea votes from every left-wing and separatist group. In all, 179 lawmakers backed Sánchez.All seven lawmakers belonging to the Catalan separatist Junts party, which had the power to either make Sánchez prime minister or force Spain to hold new elections, voted in his favor. So, too, did the sole representative of the Canarian Coalition, who last month also voted in favor of center-right Popular Party leader Alberto Núñez Feijóo’s failed bid to form a government.As expected, the 171 lawmakers belonging to Feijóo’s party and the far-right Vox group, as well as the conservative Navarrese People’s Union, voted against the socialist candidate.Sánchez’s win in parliament conc...

Restaurant review: Educazione Napoletana

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:52:37 GMT

Rue du Mail 1What’s good? Educazione Napoletana does what it says on the tin: It is a compendium of all things Naples, the gritty and picturesque city that gave the world pizza and “O sole mio.”  Its sophisticated menu includes five different pizza categories — Gourmet, comfort food-ish Fried, Traditional, Special pizzas, and name-dropping VIP pizzas — plus a vast selection of antipasti, and stuffed pizzas known as panuozzi.None of the novelty pizzas strays into the outrageous — pineapple on pizza is “violence,” reads a poster in the dining room, and ordering a pineapple pizza costs a punitive €100. Yours truly had a Matteo Mevio (VIP), a pesto-soaked take on the O.G. Margherita, and wolfed it down in three minutes flat. The tiramisù, served in a disassembled coffee machine, is also a highlight. What’s not? The conscious eater (such as yours truly’s dining mate, who got a Vegetariana) may balk at the restaurant’s unabashedly indulgent cuisine. Expect...

Route 3 reopens in Billerica after crash causes fuel tanker rollover caught on dashcam

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:52:37 GMT

Traffic is moving again on Route 3 in Billerica after a crash involving multiple vehicles Wednesday morning, including a fuel tanker truck, prompted officials to close the highway so that a massive clean-up effort could get underway.In an update Thursday morning, the Department of Transportation said all lanes have since reopened. Environmental clean-up will resume with lane closures after 10 a.m.https://twitter.com/MassDOT/status/1725094188390248451https://twitter.com/MassDOT/status/1725087649583464783The crash around 10 a.m. on the northbound side of the highway involved a tanker truck that was carrying thousands of gallons of fuel. Dashcam video shared with 7NEWS showed what appeared to be a pickup truck attempt to switch lanes on Route 3 before striking a passing SUV, then spinning out and crashing into the tanker truck. The tanker then ended up on its side, swinging around on the roadway before coming to a complete stop.All lanes of traffic in both directions were closed as a r...

Mild Now… Weekend Rain Drop to Temps Drops

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:52:37 GMT

As temps pushed to near 50 with plenty of sunshine yesterday, overall, it was a perfectly fine November day. Today, we’ll have perfectly fine October weather as temps head into the lower 60s with a ton of sunshine and light afternoon breezes. Great to get some of that yardwork done, or hang up some Christmas lights if that’s on your to-do list. Tomorrow, we’ll step it up another notch with highs in the mid 60s. However, we’ll watch a gusty breeze to develop out of the southwest, gusting 20-30mph in the afternoon. More clouds advance in too, especially in the afternoon. Friday night into Saturday morning, we’ll track to systems across the area that’ll impact our weather. As a cold front approaches from the west, and an area of low pressure nears us from our south, the chance for showers go up. The highest risk of steady rain Saturday morning is across the mid to lower Cape and the Islands, as it’ll be closest to the area of low pressure blowi...

Mass. Attorney General Andrea Campbell launches gun violence prevention unit

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:52:37 GMT

A gun violence prevention unit Attorney General Andrea Campbell announced Thursday will focus on enforcing the state’s gun and consumer protection laws while working to ensure Massachusetts has the “most comprehensive” gun laws on the books.Campbell appointed Christine Doktor, a former managing attorney at the gun safety group Everytown Law, to lead the unit and Ryan Mingo, former chief of the Major Felony Bureau at the Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office, to serve as second-in-command of the office.“As senseless acts of gun violence continue to terrorize and harm children, families, and communities in Massachusetts and across the country, we must step up and ensure that each one of us has the right to live free from gun violence,” Campbell said in a statement. “Our Gun Violence Prevention Unit will lead the way in holding accountable bad actors in the gun industry and others who violate our gun laws, while respecting the rights of responsible gun owners.”The unit’s creation c...

City of Hamilton reaches tentative deal with transit workers, bus drivers

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:52:37 GMT

Transit riders in Hamilton can breathe a sigh of relief as a tentative deal has been reached between the city and its striking bus drivers after a week-long strike.In a statement posted in X early Thursday morning, Hamilton Mayor Andrea Horwath said AUT Local 107, the union representing nearly 900 Hamilton Street Railway (HSR) workers, will present the deal to transit workers, including bus drivers.“I know this disruption had very real impacts on people’s lives and I look forward to the full restoration of service as soon as possible,” Horwath said.I’m thrilled to announce that we have a tentative agreement with ATU Local 107! My statement below. pic.twitter.com/OkduvKKuVl— Andrea Horwath (@AndreaHorwath) November 16, 2023Details of the tentative agreement haven’t been released but wages had been a stick point for union members.The week-long strike impacted thousands of commuters who rely on the HSR daily.“With a tentative agreement reached, we ar...

Russian court convicts a woman for protesting the war in Ukraine in latest crackdown on free speech

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:52:37 GMT

TALLINN, Estonia (AP) — A Russian court on Thursday convicted an artist and musician for replacing supermarket price tags with antiwar slogans and sentenced her to seven years in prison, Russian media reported.Sasha Skochilenko, 33, has been held in her home city of St. Petersburg since April 2022 on charges of spreading false information about the military.She was arrested a month after Russia adopted a law effectively criminalizing any public expression about the war in Ukraine that deviates from the Kremlin’s official line. The legislation has been used in a widespread crackdown on opposition politicians, human rights activists and ordinary Russians critical of the Kremlin, with many receiving lengthy prison terms.The Associated Press

One year on from World Cup, Qatar and FIFA urged by rights group to do more for migrant workers

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:52:37 GMT

LONDON (AP) — One year after Qatar hosted the men’s World Cup, the gas-rich emirate and soccer governing body FIFA were urged Thursday by human rights group Amnesty International to do more for migrant workers who were essential to prepare the tournament and still face labor abuses.Qatar’s treatment of hundreds of thousands of imported workers, mostly in searing heat, plus the slow pace of labor law reforms and enforcement drew intense scrutiny and criticism for more than a decade before games started on Nov. 20 last year.Progress has stalled since the month-long soccer tournament ended, Amnesty said Thursday.“Qatar and FIFA must act urgently to ensure victims’ right to remedy and compensation are not denied or delayed any further,” Amnesty said in a statement.FIFA and the United Nations-backed International Labor Organization acknowledge that challenges remain and more needs to be done enacting Qatari law reforms. Labor rights are still an issue almost 13 years after FIFA leaders s...

Stretch of southbound DVP shut down for fatal incident involving pedestrian

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:52:37 GMT

A stretch of the Don Valley Parkway heading into downtown Toronto has been shut down as police investigate a fatal incident involving a pedestrian.Emergency crews were called to the southbound lanes of the highway near the Leaside Bridge before 7 a.m. Thursday after getting reports of an injured person in live lanes of traffic.Police confirm to CityNews the injured pedestrian was pronounced dead at the scene.The southbound DVP is closed from Don Mills Road to the Bayview/Bloor exit for the investigation. All southbound traffic north of the closure is currently being forced off at Don Mills.The closure is expected to remain in place for at least an hour, according to police.#listen-box { box-shadow: 0 0 0 0 rgba(0, 0, 0, 1); animation: pulse 2s infinite; margin: 20px; padding: 15px;}@keyframes pulse { 0% { box-shadow: 0 0 0 0 rgba(0, 157, 79, 0.7); } 70% { box-shadow: 0 0 0 10px rgba(0, 157, 79, 0); } 100% { box-shadow: 0 0 0 0 rgba(0, ...

Awkward lie: Rory McIlroy’s ball lodges in the lap of a spectator at World Tour Championship

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:52:37 GMT

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — It was the most awkward lie of the day for Rory McIlroy.The four-time major winner’s tee shot on the par-3 13th hole at the World Tour Championship on Thursday somehow landed in the lap of a female spectator as she lay on grass to the right of the green.Amid much laughter, the rest of the spectators retreated but the woman remained lying down, with her feet crossed and the ball lodged between her legs.McIlroy went up to her, scratched his head, then feigned a shot — to the amusement of the gallery. McIlroy stood back and said: “Right, ermm. Referee!”The match referee arrived and gave McIlroy a drop, saying: “Basically, it’s the spot underneath her.”“You can get up,” a laughing McIlroy said to the woman, who handed him the ball, stood up, picked up her bag and returned to the gallery to cheers.McIlroy chipped onto the green and wound up making bogey.___AP golf: https://apnews.com/hub/golfThe Associated Press