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US intelligence assessment determines intentionally caused explosion killed Wagner chief Prigozhin

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:14:05 GMT

A preliminary U.S. intelligence assessment has found that the plane crash presumed to have killed Wagner leader Yevgeny Prigozhin was intentionally caused by an explosion, according to U.S. and Western officials.One of the officials, who were not authorized to comment and spoke on the condition of anonymity, said that the explosion fell in line with Russian President Vladimir Putin’s “long history of trying to silence his critics.”The officials did not offer any details of what caused the explosion that was believed to have killed Prigozhin and several of his lieutenants to avenge a mutiny that challenged the Russian leader’s authority.Details of the U.S. assessment surfaced as Putin on Thursday expressed his condolences to the families of those who were reported to be aboard the jet and referred to “serious mistakes.”THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. AP’s earlier story follows below.Russian mercenary chief Yevgeny Prigozhin and some of his top lieutenants were presumed dead in ...

BSO searching for suspect in arson case at Oakland Park Church

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:14:05 GMT

The Broward Sheriff’s Office Violent Crimes Unit is on the lookout for an individual captured on surveillance video, setting fire to the front doors of the Power Outreach Ministry in Oakland Park.Authorities reported that on Monday, Aug. 14, at approximately 1:41 a.m., Broward County Regional Communications received an alert about a fire at 2600 N.W. 21st Ave. BSO deputies and Oakland Park Fire Rescue responded to the scene and contained the blaze. Further investigation by firefighters uncovered signs suggesting the fire at the church was intentionally set, as confirmed by the Oakland Park City Fire Marshal.The surveillance footage shows an unidentified person entering the property’s parking area with a gas can. The suspect is then seen pouring liquid on the front doors before igniting a paper towel and using it to set the entrance ablaze. The fire caused more than $1,000 in damage.The individual fled west on Northwest 26th Street. If anyone has information about the per...

Feeding South Florida receives $2M grant to help battle hunger

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:14:05 GMT

In an attempt to alleviate food insecurity, Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman-Schultz presented a significant financial boost to a local non-profit organization. Feeding South Florida is dedicated to addressing hunger-related issues in the area and received a $2 million grant aimed at fortifying its efforts in providing sustenance to those in need.The generous funding, made possible through a congressional grant program, holds the potential to create a transformative impact, enabling Feeding South Florida to extend its reach and enhance its initiatives aimed at battling hunger. At the heart of the allocation lies the endeavor to establish a mobile market and kitchen, a crucial step toward addressing the dietary needs of low-income families. The funds will facilitate the setup of this innovative mobile unit, aptly named “Big Mamma Jamma,” designed to bring free and low-cost, wholesome meals directly to those who require it most. “This is also going to double as an emer...

Prigozhin lives! Kremlin battles rumors Wagner chief faked his death

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:14:05 GMT

If Russia’s propaganda machine seemed caught off guard by Yevgeny Prigozhin’s mutiny, its reaction to his death in a plane crash has been far more disciplined. Take Margarita Simonyan, the normally outspoken editor-in-chief of the state broadcaster RT. As Prigozhin’s Wagner troops marched on Moscow in late June, her social media accounts were silent. Only days later, after calm had been restored, did she resurface, saying she’d been digitally detoxing while on a trip down the Volga River.  But Wednesday evening, when news broke that a plane reportedly carrying Prigozhin had plummeted to the ground, her take was swift: “Among the versions being discussed is that this is a fake,” she wrote on Telegram. “But I personally am leaning towards the more obvious.” Across the state apparatus, the narrative is clear: The crash is likely a technical affair and Prigozhin is, indeed, dead. Nothing much to see here. It took less than two hours after the plane disappea...

‘Worst case of intentional starvation they have ever seen’: MSPCA rehabs emaciated dog recovered from Roxbury home

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:14:05 GMT

The MSPCA says a dog at the center of an animal cruelty case in Roxbury is on the mend after suffering from what its staff considered “the worst case of intentional starvation they have ever seen.”Hours after the Boston Police Department announced the arrest of Lakeida Burris, 36, who was wanted on outstanding warrants for two counts of Animal Cruelty, the MSPCA provided an update on the three-year-old dog she had kept.“Jobee,” a male Pit Bull-mix, was “lucky to be alive” after he was discovered living at a Roxbury home on July 4, according to the animal welfare organization. The dog had been experiencing extreme emaciation and was brought to the Angell Animal Medical Center for intensive treatment.“Jobee weighed only 24-and-a-half pounds when he was first brought to Angell—or about half his healthy body weight according to the veterinary team taking care of him,” the organization stated in a news release.“This is the worst case of sta...

Dollar Tree said theft is such a problem it will start locking up items or stop selling them altogether

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:14:05 GMT

New York (CNN) — Dollar Tree had a miserable quarter, and company management is chalking it up to a mix of factors: changing consumer demands on top of higher prices for fuel and electricity … and theft.The company’s chief executive and chief financial officer homed in on that last one on a call with Wall Street analysts Thursday.Dollar Tree CEO Richard Dreiling and CFO Jeffrey Davis blamed a surprisingly large drop in gross profit margin — tumbling to 29.8% last quarter from 32.7% a year earlier — on “shrink,” the industry term for inventory losses due to theft, damages and other causes.Davis said the company has taken steps to fix the problem, but the shrink issue is getting worse — and “definitely advanced a little further than what we had anticipated.”In response, Dreiling said Dollar Tree and Family Dollar stores, which the company also owns, will take more drastic measures in the coming months.“We are now taking a very defensive approach to shrink,” Dreiling told analysts...

Justice Department sues SpaceX, alleging discriminatory hiring practices

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:14:05 GMT

(CNN) — The US Justice Department has filed a lawsuit against SpaceX, the Elon Musk-run rocket and spacecraft company with extensive government contracts, for allegedly discriminating against refugees in its hiring practices.The suit claims that “from at least September 2018 to May 2022, SpaceX routinely discouraged asylees and refugees from applying and refused to hire or consider them, because of their citizenship status, in violation of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA),” according to an August 24 DOJ news release.It goes on to allege SpaceX falsely claimed in its job listings that only green card holders and United States citizens could work at the company because of federal export control laws.There are specific laws — such as the International Traffic in Arms Regulations — that apply to companies manufacturing spacecraft and rockets and limit foreign nationals from accessing key information about the vehicles for national security reasons.But the new law...

T-Mobile will lay off 5,000 employees, or about 7% of its workforce, in the coming weeks

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:14:05 GMT

By WYATTE GRANTHAM-PHILIPS (AP Business Writer)NEW YORK (AP) — Wireless carrier T-Mobile said Thursday it plans to cut 5,000 jobs, or about 7% of its workforce.In email to employees shared in a regulatory filing, CEO Michael Sievert said the layoffs would come over the next five weeks and impact T-Mobile workers across the country — particularly those working in corporate and back-office roles, as well as some technology positions. Retail and customer service teams will not be part of the cuts.“This is a large change, and an unusual one for our company,” Sievert wrote. “Because of this, we do not envision making additional largescale reductions across the company again in the foreseeable future.”T-Mobile estimated it will book a pre-tax charge of about $450 million in the third quarter related to the job cuts. Laid-off employees will receive severance payments based on tenure, 60 days minimum of transition leave, career transition services and other benefits, Thursday’s announcement...

Analysis: Some clear losers in first GOP debate, but the absent Trump emerges largely unscathed

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:14:05 GMT

By Seema Mehta and David Lauter, Los Angeles TimesMILWAUKEE — Like a chorus line awaiting its leading man, eight Republican presidential hopefuls opened their first debate Wednesday night without the party’s main attraction, hoping to show they can solve a puzzle that has bewildered GOP politicians for eight years: how to get past Donald Trump.For most of the first hour of the two-hour confrontation, however, the candidates largely tried to ignore Trump’s dominating presence. Instead, it was the campaign’s political newcomer, Vivek Ramaswamy, who quickly became the center of attention, rebutting accusations by former Vice President Mike Pence that he’s unqualified.“We don’t need to bring in a rookie,” Pence said, the first of several time during the debate’s opening hour in which he focused on the 38-year-old entrepreneur, who has risen in recent polls.A few minutes later, as Ramaswamy declared himself the “only candidate not bought and paid for,” former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christ...

India’s lunar rover goes down a ramp to the moon’s surface and takes a walk

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:14:05 GMT

NEW DELHI (AP) — A lunar rover slid down a ramp from the lander of India’s spacecraft within hours of its historic touch-down near the moon’s south pole, Indian space officials said Thursday, as the country celebrated its new scientific accomplishment.“India took a walk on the moon,” the state-run Indian Space Research Organization said, adding that the Chandrayan-3 Rover would conduct experiments over 14 days, including an analysis of the mineral composition of the lunar surface.Residents of the world’s most populous country had crowded around televisions in offices, shops, and restaurants on Wednesday and erupted into clapping, dancing, and exchanging of sweets when they saw the lander’s smooth touchdown. It landed on uncharted territory that scientists believe could hold vital reserves of frozen water.“India Goes Where No Nation’s Gone Before,’ read Thursday’s headline in The Times of India daily, while the Indian Express newspaper exclaimed, “The moon is Indian.”Ajay Bhargava, a...