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Azerbaijan claims big advance in Nagorno-Karabakh as civilians shelter

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 19:10:15 GMT

YEREVAN, Armenia — Dozens of people have reportedly been killed in Nagorno-Karabakh as Azerbaijan’s military offensive against the breakaway region stretches into a second day.Locals living in the ethnic-Armenian controlled region, surrounded on all sides by Azerbaijani troops, sought refuge in basements Tuesday night amid a massive artillery barrage. Siranush Sargsyan, a local journalist, wrote online that she had spent the night in a bomb shelter. “I don’t know if we will wake up,” she said.In a briefing Wednesday morning, Azerbaijan’s Ministry of Defense spokesman, Anar Eyvazov, insisted that Azerbaijan is not targeting civilians, but the South Caucasus country accuses Armenian commanders of stationing troops in residential areas.“The Azerbaijani army is reported to have suppressed by now the resistance of Armenian military units and to have broken the line of contact in several directions,” Vaqif Sadiqov, Azerbaijan’s EU ambassador, wrot...

Tory row erupts as Rishi Sunak eyes rollback of key green plans

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 19:10:15 GMT

LONDON — Splits in Britain’s governing Conservative Party burst into the open Wednesday morning after a report that Prime Minister Rishi Sunak plans to loosen a host of key environmental policies.The BBC reported late Tuesday that seven green policies now face a rethink. It prompted a hurried response from No. 10 Downing Street and a statement from Sunak confirming he’ll be making a speech this week — but insisting he remains committed to the U.K.’s headline goal of reducing carbon emissions to net zero by 2050.“No leak will stop me beginning the process of telling the country how and why we need to change,” Sunak said.“As a first step, I’ll be giving a speech this week to set out an important long-term decision we need to make so our country becomes the place I know we all want it to be for our children.”Changes reportedly under consideration include shifting a 2030 ban on new petrol and diesel car sales to 2035; phasing out 80 p...

BB&N back MacCormack ‘obviously special’

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 19:10:15 GMT

WATERTOWN — Maybe it is fitting that, when Buckingham, Browne & Nichols football coach Mike Willey was asked to pick a moment he knew Bo MacCormack would be special, it was not even an offensive play.That’s because MacCormack, the game-changing running back for the Knights, does so much more than just run the ball well. His versatility is undeniable.The play in question actually came on special teams two years ago, when the Westford native was a freshman.“Bo’s obviously special. He’s been special since he got here,” Willey said. “I think one of the things that really set a memory in my mind is we’re playing Governor’s, always a well-coached team. He was starting running back that game and played outstanding on offense. But he was also on the kickoff (return) team, and he recovered a surprise onside kick, where it took a lot of courage to go in there and get it. I was like, ‘Wow, this kid is carrying the football for us. He...

Israel’s Netanyahu will meet Biden in New York. The location is seen as a sign of US displeasure

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 19:10:15 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is set to have his long-coveted meeting with President Joe Biden on Wednesday — bringing together the two leaders for the first time since the Israeli leader took office at the helm of his country’s far-right government late last year.Netanyahu has been a frequent visitor to the White House over the years, and Israeli leaders are typically invited within weeks of taking office. The lengthy delay in setting up the meeting with Biden, and the White House decision to hold the meeting in New York rather than Washington, have been widely interpreted in Israel as signs of U.S. displeasure with Netanyahu’s new government.“Meeting at the White House symbolizes close relations and friendship and honor, and the denial of that shows exactly the opposite,” said Eytan Gilboa, an expert on U.S.-Israeli relations at Israel’s Bar-Ilan University. “This is not going to be a pleasant meeting,” Gilboa said. “It is going to be a sour meeting.”The White ...

UK leader Rishi Sunak signals plan to backtrack on some climate goals

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 19:10:15 GMT

LONDON (AP) — Prime Minister Rishi Sunak is preparing to water down some of Britain’s climate commitments, saying the country must fight climate change without penalizing workers and consumers. Sunak issued a late-night statement Tuesday in response to a BBC report saying the prime minister is considering extending deadlines for bans on new gasoline and diesel cars – currently due in 2030 —- and on new natural-gas home heating. Sunak said that in a speech this week he will set out a “proportionate” approach to the environment. He did not set a date for the speech, which could come as early as Wednesday.“For too many years politicians in governments of all stripes have not been honest about costs and trade offs,” Sunak said in a statement. “Instead they have taken the easy way out, saying we can have it all.”Sunak did not confirm details of his announcements. He said he would keep a promise to reduce the U.K.’s emissions of climate-warming greenhouse gases to net ze...

In the news today: India tensions rise, PM at UN and Unifor strikes deal with Ford

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 19:10:15 GMT

Here is a roundup of stories from The Canadian Press designed tobring you up to speed on what you need to know today…Diplomatic tension with India could last monthsOne expert thinks Canada may be just at the beginning of a months-long diplomatic spat with India, as allies await more information on accusations New Delhi played a role in the death of a Canadian citizen.Roland Paris, who leads the University of Ottawa graduate school of international affairs, says the countries have issued contradicting statements, making it difficult to find common ground.On Monday, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced Canadian intelligence services are investigating “a potential link” between India’s government and the death of Sikh leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar in B.C.India calls those claims “absurd and motivated,” leading Trudeau to urge India to take the allegations seriously and co-operate with a police investigation.Canada expelled a senior Indian diplomat M...

Newfoundland university threw open its doors to Titanic dive operator, emails show

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 19:10:15 GMT

ST. JOHN’S, N.L. — A research institute at Newfoundland and Labrador’s Memorial University threw open its “proverbial doors” last year to the company that owned the doomed Titan submersible, less than a year before the vessel suffered a catastrophic implosion while diving to the Titanic shipwreck.Emails obtained by The Canadian Press show officials with Memorial’s Fisheries and Marine Institute signed an agreement with OceanGate in December allowing the company to store equipment with the university and promising that students and faculty would have opportunities “to join OceanGate expeditions to support research endeavours.”The memorandum of understanding also says the marine institute would show OceanGate’s submersible to visitors in an effort to promote ocean literacy and the “blue economy.”The Titan submersible was last heard from on June 18, after it dropped into the North Atlantic on its way to the Titanic wreck site....

If it’s Wednesday, it must be time to save the world at the UN General Assembly

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 19:10:15 GMT

WASHINGTON — If you think your Wednesday is going to be busy, pour one out for Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. Canada’s to-do list at the United Nations? Confronting the climate crisis, helping Ukraine defeat Russia and eradicating global poverty, among other things. Trudeau will take in a UN Security Council debate on the way forward in Ukraine, where President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is scheduled to speak. At a climate ambition summit, Secretary-General António Guterres is expected to hold leaders to account on what they’re doing to confront the emergency. Trudeau will also take part in high-level meetings on creating new finance models to help the developing world find sustainable solutions. And he’ll join Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault at an event aimed at helping developing countries deal with their carbon emissions. “The time has come for all of us to step up and understand: the future is expecting us all to meet this moment,” Trudeau said Tues...

Canada in ‘early stages’ of diplomatic tension with India: former Trudeau adviser

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 19:10:15 GMT

OTTAWA — One expert thinks Canada may be just at the beginning of a months-long diplomatic spat with India, as allies await more information on accusations New Delhi played a role in the death of a Canadian citizen.Roland Paris, who leads the University of Ottawa graduate school of international affairs, says the countries have issued contradicting statements, making it difficult to find common ground.On Monday, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced Canadian intelligence services are investigating “a potential link” between India’s government and the death of Sikh leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar in B.C.India calls those claims “absurd and motivated,” leading Trudeau to urge India to take the allegations seriously and co-operate with a police investigation.Canada expelled a senior Indian diplomat Monday.Then India expelled a Canadian envoy, arguing it was because of concerns Canada is harbouring extremists who want a separate country for Sikhs.Paris says t...

Parents’ doubts persist after forum on Montreal supervised drug-use site near school

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 19:10:15 GMT

MONTREAL — Several parents say they were left with serious doubts after a tense Tuesday evening information session about a new supervised drug-use site opening near their children’s Montreal elementary school.Marie-Ève Bourrelle was among them. She emerged from the Victor-Rousselot school gymnasium in the second hour of what was supposed to be a one-hour meeting to answer parents’ questions and address concerns about neighbourhood security.Bourrelle said she’s generally in favour of expanding overdose prevention services, just not so close to a school. The stakes, she suggested, are now high for local officials and the organization behind the new centre, Maison Benoît Labre, to follow through on hopes for a harmonious integration in the surrounding community.“If the security is not done like they say, I’m going to refuse to let my child go to school,” Bourrelle vowed.Maison Benoît Labre is a non-profit that serves unhoused people. Its under-const...