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Northern Irish police chief quits over claims he sought ‘to appease Sinn Féin’

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:37:00 GMT

DUBLIN – The commander of Northern Ireland’s police force resigned Monday after infuriating rank-and-file officers over his bungled handling of two separate scandals.Against the odds, Chief Constable Simon Byrne had defied demands for his immediate resignation following last month’s accidental publication of the professional details of his entire 10,000-strong workforce. That unprecedented data breach revealed the closely guarded identities of key anti-terrorist personnel, exposing them to potential attack by Irish Republican Army die-hards.But he couldn’t survive the even stronger internal uproar over his defiant announcement last week that he intended to appeal a Belfast High Court judgment. It found he had unlawfully punished two junior officers as they tried to enforce coronavirus regulations at an Irish republican event in 2021. The court found he had bowed to political pressure from Sinn Féin, a finding that both he and the Irish republican party denied.“The last few day...

Mercedes unveils new electric vehicles with better range than any Tesla model

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:37:00 GMT

London (CNN) — Mercedes-Benz has just unveiled new “close-to-production” concept vehicles that could outdo Tesla cars by going more than 466 miles on a single charge. That’s compared with a range of less than 380 miles for any Tesla model.The German automaker’s Concept CLA Class, revealed Sunday at the IAA Mobility auto show in Munich, comprises four new models: a sedan, a station wagon and two SUVs. The company did not specify when exactly they would enter production.The vehicles will each have a range of more than 750 kilometers (466 miles), versus Tesla’s (TSLA) Model 3 and Model S, which have the brand’s highest ranges and each can go for just under 375 miles off one charge.Meanwhile, BMW also made a splash at the show by revealing a new electric vehicle that boasts a longer range and faster charging, in further evidence of German automakers’ efforts to fend off growing EV competition.Big European carmakers such as Volkswagen and Renault a...

Steve Harwell, former Smash Mouth lead singer, dies at 56

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:37:00 GMT

Steve Harwell, the former lead singer of the rock band Smash Mouth, which was best known for its ubiquitous 1999 hit “All Star,” died Monday. He was 56.His death, at his home in Boise, Idaho, was confirmed by the band’s manager, Robert Hayes, who said the cause was liver failure.Smash Mouth was founded in 1994 in San Jose, California, and was made up of Harwell, the lead singer, Kevin Coleman on drums, Greg Camp on guitar, and Paul De Lisle on bass. The band first broke out with their 1997 song “Walkin’ on the Sun,” which appeared on their debut album, “Fush Yu Mang.”“‘Walkin’ on the Sun’ changed music. It changed the way people listen to music,” Harwell told Rolling Stone in 2019. “It was so different and it was so unusual, and it was so special. It just had that sound that we created. Ask anybody that’s tried to copy us, you can’t. You just can’t.”The band enjoyed even greater success with the release of their next album, “Astro Lounge,” in 1999, and its chart-topping hit “All Sta...

Mattapan nightclub shooting: Jamaica Plain man arrested after 2 people shot at Macumba

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:37:00 GMT

Two people were shot in a Mattapan nightclub early Monday morning, as Boston Police officers arrested a Jamaica Plain man on gun charges in connection to the shooting.The gunshots rang out while a police officer was near the River Street nightclub Macumba after midnight — addressing community complaints for illegally parked cars.While at the scene, the cop saw people streaming out of the nightclub after a person was shot. The officer was also told that a suspect with a gun was fleeing the area.As the cop chased the suspect, he allegedly dropped a firearm. Officers recovered the gun, and handcuffed Regan Feliz, 29, of Jamaica Plain. Police also found a firearm in his waistband.Related ArticlesCrime & Public Safety | Heavy fire spreads through three residential Mattapan buildings As responding officers arrived at the scene, they found a victim suffering from an apparent gunshot wound. The victim was transported to a local hospital with non-life-threatening in...

Nigeria mulls G20 bloc membership as president heads to India to attend summit

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:37:00 GMT

ABUJA, Nigeria (AP) — Nigeria’s President Bola Tinubu left for India on Monday to attend this year’s G20 summit, as his country considers joining the bloc of major world economies, presidential spokesperson Ajuri Ngelale said.Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi extended a special invitation to Tinubu, as Nigeria’s membership is under consideration.“While Nigeria’s membership of the G-20 is desirable, the government has embarked on wide-ranging consultations with a view to ascertaining the benefits and risks of membership,” Ngelale said in a statement.The G20 brings together 19 countries and the European Union, with India currently holding its presidency, which rotates annually among the members. Many world leaders are expected to attend the two-day global summit in New Delhi.If Nigeria joins the G20 bloc, it would be the second African country after South Africa to join the league of the most industrialized nations of the world. Nigeria has the highest GDP in Afric...

Tens of thousands still stranded by Burning Man flooding in Nevada desert

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:37:00 GMT

BLACK ROCK DESERT, Nev. (AP) — Tens of thousands of partygoers were still stranded Monday morning in the northern Nevada desert after a late-summer storm turned a week-long counterculture fest into a mud pit. Burning Man organizers said the main road leading out of the festival was still too muddy for a mass exodus of RVs and vehicles to safely exit but hoped traffic could begin flowing around noon Monday.Organizers closed the festival to vehicles after more than a half an inch (1.3 centimeters) of rain on Friday drenched the Black Rock Desert about 110 miles (177 kilometers) north of Reno.The annual gathering attracts nearly 80,000 artists, musicians and activists for a mix of wilderness camping and avant-garde performances. Disruptions are part of the event’s recent history: Organizers had to temporarily close entrances to the festival in 2018 due to dust storms, and the event was twice canceled altogether during the pandemic.“We are a little bit dirty and muddy but spirits ...

Putin has dashed global hopes for reviving the Ukraine grain deal. This is why it matters

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:37:00 GMT

ISTANBUL (AP) — Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan met with Vladimir Putin on Monday, hoping to persuade the Russian leader to rejoin the Black Sea grain deal that Moscow broke off from in July. But Putin made it clear that the initiative would not be restored until Moscow’s expectations for Russian agricultural exports are met.Here are some key things to know and what’s at stake:WHAT WAS THE OUTCOME OF THE TALKS?Putin and Erdogan met for more than three hours on Russia’s southern coast after weeks of speculation about when and where they might meet. Erdogan had previously said Putin would travel to Turkey in August. Putin, however, poured cold water over hopes for a revival of the grain initiative, saying the West must first meet its obligations to facilitate Russian agricultural exports. WHY DID RUSSIA LEAVE THE GRAIN DEAL?The Kremlin refused to renew the grain agreement when it expired in July. The deal — brokered by the United Nations and Turkey in July 2022 — ha...

Ontario Greenbelt controversy timeline

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:37:00 GMT

Embattled Ontario Housing Minister Steve Clark stepped down from his cabinet role on Monday following weeks of criticism over his handling of efforts to remove land from the province’s protected Greenbelt.Here is a timeline of events in the controversy:Nov. 4, 2022: Municipal Affairs and Housing Minister Steve Clark announces via news release that Ontario would remove 7,400 acres in 15 different areas of the Greenbelt, while adding 9,400 acres elsewhere, in order to build 50,000 homes. It contradicted a pledge he made in 2021 not to open up the Greenbelt “to any kind of development.”Nov. 11: CBC reports that the landowners who stand to benefit from the Greenbelt land removals include prominent developers and that one purchase happened as recently as September.Nov. 30: Clark says he did not tip off developers ahead of announcing changes to the Greenbelt. Premier Doug Ford says the same a day later.Jan. 6, 2023: Ontario Provincial Police say they’re working to determine wh...

Smash Mouth frontman Steve Harwell dies at 56

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:37:00 GMT

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Steve Harwell, the longtime frontman of the Grammy-nominated pop rock band Smash Mouth has died. He was 56. The band’s manager, Robert Hayes, said Harwell “passed peacefully and comfortably” Monday morning surrounded by family and friends at his home in Boise, Idaho. The cause of death was acute liver failure, Hayes said in a statement.Smash Mouth was known for hits including “All star” and “Then the morning comes.”“Steve Harwell was a true American Original. A larger than life character who shot up into the sky like a Roman candle,” Hayes said. “Steve should be remembered for his unwavering focus and impassioned determination to reach the heights of pop stardom.” Born in California in 1967, Harwell performed in a rap group called F.O.S. (Freedom of Speech) before forming Smash Mouth in 1994. The band released two two platinum albums on Interscope Records, the ska-fueled 1997’s “Fush Yu Mang” and 1999’s “Astro Lounge.” The second albu...

Putin says he won’t renew the grain deal until the West meets his demands. The West says it has

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:37:00 GMT

Russian President Vladimir Putin said Monday that a landmark deal allowing Ukraine to export grain safely through the Black Sea amid the war won’t be restored until the West meets Moscow’s demands on its own agricultural exports.Ukraine and its Western allies have dismissed the Kremlin’s demands as a ploy to advance its own interests.Still, Putin’s remarks dashed hopes that his talks with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan could revive an agreement seen as vital for global food supplies, especially in Africa, the Middle East and Asia.Russia refused to extend the deal in July, complaining that a parallel agreement promising to remove obstacles to Russian exports of food and fertilizer hadn’t been honored. It said restrictions on shipping and insurance hampered its agricultural trade, though it has shipped record amounts of wheat since last year.Putin reiterated those complaints Monday, while also telling reporters that if those commitments were honored, Russia could r...