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Top officials from Turkey and Sweden head to NATO to try to overcome membership concerns

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 18:16:23 GMT

BRUSSELS (AP) — Senior officials from Sweden and Turkey will gather at NATO headquarters on Thursday to examine Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s objections to the Nordic country joining the military alliance and to see what more, if anything, can be done to break the deadlock.NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg will lead the meeting, which will involve the countries’ foreign ministers, intelligence chiefs and national security advisers. Top officials from Finland, which joined NATO in April after itself addressing Turkish concerns, will also take part.Fearing for their security, Sweden and neighboring Finland ended their longstanding policy of military nonalignment after Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022 and both applied for NATO membership.President Joe Biden welcomed Sweden’s prime minister to the White House on Wednesday in a show of solidarity as the United States ramped up pressure for the Nordic nation’s entry into NATO ahead of the alliance’s two-day summit ...

Germany, Netherlands arrest 9 over an alleged plan for attacks in line with Islamic State group

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 18:16:23 GMT

BERLIN (AP) — Nine people from central Asia were arrested in Germany and the Netherlands on Thursday in connection alleged plans to carry out attacks in Germany in line with the Islamic State group’s ideology, authorities said.Seven men arrested in Germany are accused of founding a militant group and of supporting IS, German federal prosecutors said. All had known each other for a long time, had radical Islamic views and came to Germany more or less simultaneously from Ukraine shortly after Russia launched its full-scale invasion last year, they added.A year ago, the suspects allegedly formed a group that aimed to carry out attacks in Germany. According to prosecutors, the group was in contact with an IS offshoot, Islamic State Khorasan Province. Its members had checked out possible targets in Germany and attempted to procure weapons, but “there was no concrete plan for an attack at the time of today’s arrest,” prosecutors said in a statement. All but one of the me...

For the third day in a row, the Earth’s average temperature remained at a record high

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 18:16:23 GMT

Earth’s average temperature remained at a record high Wednesday, after two days in which the planet reached unofficial records. It’s the latest marker in a series of climate-change-driven extremes.The average global temperature was 17.18 Celsius (62.9 degrees Fahrenheit), according to the University of Maine’s Climate Reanalyzer, a tool that uses satellite data and computer simulations to measure the world’s condition. That matched a record set Tuesday of 17.18 Celsius (62.9 Fahrenheit), and came after a previous record of 17.01 Celsius (62.6 degrees Fahrenheit) was set Monday.Scientists have warned for months that 2023 could see record heat as human-caused climate change, driven largely by the burning of fossil fuels like coal, natural gas and oil, warmed the atmosphere. They also noted that La Nina, the natural cooling of the ocean that had acted as a counter to that warming, was giving way to El Nino, the reverse phenomenon marked by warming oceans. The North Atlantic has seen re...

Australian government distances itself from Donald Trump Jr.’s postponed tour

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 18:16:23 GMT

CANBERRA, Australia (AP) — Australia’s center-left government distanced itself Thursday from the postponement of Donald Trump Jr.’s speaking tour in Australia.His promoters said the eldest son of the former U.S. president was deferring visits to Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane because his Australian visa was only approved on Wednesday, 24 hours before he was to board a flight.“It seems America isn’t the only country that makes it difficult for the Trumps,” said Turning Point Australia, a local version of the U.S. conservative political organization.Some conservatives accuse Australia’s Labor Party administration of delaying Trump Jr.’s visa process.But Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said his government was not responsible for Trump Jr.’s change of plans.“Donald Trump Jr.’s visa was dealt with in the normal way and like anyone else he was entitled to come here,” Albanese said. “The deferral of his travel is a matter for him.”More than 20,000 people had joined an online pe...

Tibetan spiritual leader Dalai Lama celebrates 88th birthday

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 18:16:23 GMT

DHARMSALA, India (AP) — The Dalai Lama celebrated his 88th birthday on Thursday, as hundreds of his supporters and exiled Tibetans thronged his hillside Indian headquarters in Dharamsala.Artists played traditional welcome tunes as the Tibetan spiritual leader arrived in his open mobile van to preside over the celebrations in the courtyard of the Tsuglakhang Temple, which was festooned with Tibetan and Buddhist flags and portraits.“We are celebrating my 88th birthday but look at me, I look barely 50,” the Dalai Lama said, smiling.He has made the hillside town of Dharmsala his headquarters since fleeing from Tibet after a failed uprising against Chinese rule in 1959. India considers Tibet to be part of China, though it hosts Tibetan exiles.The Dalai Lama denies being a separatist and says he only advocates substantial autonomy and protection of Tibet’s native Buddhist culture.In April, the Dalai Lama faced widespread criticism after a video circulated online showed him kissing a young...

Kazakhstan skyrockets 21 positions up to 76th place in 2023 Global Peace Index Rankings

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 18:16:23 GMT

Kazakhstan ranked 76th in the Global Peace Index (GPI), climbing 21 places, according to the June 2023 report published by the Institute for Economics and Peace (IEP).With the third highest rank of all countries in the Eurasia region, Kazakhstan experienced the most considerable improvement in overall peacefulness, rising by 4.2%.In the overall ranking, the country was placed after the United Arab Emirates (UAE), surpassing Jamaica. Iceland ranked first out of 163 countries in total.Kazakhstan recorded an improvement in both the Militarization and Safety and Security domains, with five indicators increasing, including the largest one in violent demonstrations, which improved by 50%.This year, 15 of the 23 GPI indicators remained unchanged in Kazakhstan; only three indicators on the incarceration rate, political instability, and military expenditure as a percentage of GDP deteriorated.Produced by the IEP, the GPI is the world’s leading measure of global peacefulness, presenting the m...

Single family residence in Pleasanton sells for $2.6 million

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 18:16:23 GMT

Pioneer Trail Drive – Google Street ViewA 3,097-square-foot house built in 1994 has changed hands. The spacious property located on Pioneer Trail Drive in Pleasanton was sold on May 30, 2023, for $2,570,000, or $830 per square foot. The property features four bedrooms, three bathrooms, and a garage. It sits on a 0.3-acre lot.Additional houses have recently been sold nearby:On Sycamore Road, Pleasanton, in July 2022, a 2,398-square-foot home was sold for $2,225,000, a price per square foot of $928. The home has 4 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms.In November 2022, a 3,440-square-foot home on Amber Lane in Pleasanton sold for $2,475,000, a price per square foot of $719. The home has 4 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms.A 3,445-square-foot home on the 800 block of Sunny Brook Way in Pleasanton sold in June 2022, for $3,460,000, a price per square foot of $1,004. The home has 4 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms. 

Rishi Sunak could face fifth by-election after Chris Pincher report

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 18:16:23 GMT

LONDON — Suspended Tory MP Chris Pincher could be permanently forced from parliament following a damning report into groping allegations against him.In a report Thursday, the standards committee recommended an eight-week suspension for the MP after finding that he drunkenly “groped two individuals” during visits to Westminster’s Carlton Club.Under parliament rules for removing MPs, this level of punishment — if approved by MPs — could lead to a recall petition, ultimately triggering a by-election at a time Prime Minister Rishi Sunak is already facing four.In their report, the standards committee — made up of cross-party MPs — found that Pincher’s behavior was “completely inappropriate, profoundly damaging to the individuals concerned, and represented an abuse of power.” Pincher’s conduct played a key role in the downfall of Boris Johnson, whose handling of the scandal involving an ally prompted disgruntled ministers to resign en masse. The f...

Wagner chief Prigozhin isn’t in Belarus, says Lukashenko

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 18:16:23 GMT

Mutinous Wagner warlord Yevgeny Prigozhin is not currently in Belarus, Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko said Thursday morning. “As for Yevgeny Prigozhin, he is in St. Petersburg. Where is he this morning? Maybe he went to Moscow, maybe somewhere else, but he is not on the territory of Belarus,” Lukashenko said, according to Belarusian state media. The mercenary chief was supposed to be in Belarus, after being exiled from Russia following an aborted mutiny he led against Moscow’s military establishment in June. Last week, Lukashenko said Prigozhin had arrived in Belarus.

Zuckerberg’s Twitter rival Threads reaches 10M users in 7 hours

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 18:16:23 GMT

Facebook boss Mark Zuckerberg said Thursday that his Threads app, a micro-blogging competitor to Elon Musk’s Twitter, had more than 10 million sign-ups in just seven hours.Announcing the Threads launch, Meta — also the parent company of Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp — said it would offer “a new, separate space for real-time updates and public conversations.” It added that Threads users will require an Instagram account to log into the new app, and “posts can be up to 500 characters long and include links, photos, and videos up to 5 minutes in length.” The app has launched in the U.K., the U.S. and other countries, but Meta not yet made it available in the EU.Meta’s launch of the Threads app comes amid turbulence at Twitter, where thousands of staff have been laid off since billionaire entrepreneur Musk bought the platform for $44 billion late in 2022. Over the weekend, Musk announced that some accounts would be limited in the numbers of tweets ...