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Taliban rule of Afghanistan is open-ended, their chief spokesman says as they begin year 3 in power

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 14:15:55 GMT

KANDAHAR, Afghanistan (AP) — The Taliban view their rule of Afghanistan as open-ended, drawing legitimacy from Islamic law and facing no significant threat, their chief spokesman said in an interview marking the second anniversary of the Taliban takeover of the country. He also suggested a ban on female education will remain in place.Zabihullah Mujahid brushed aside any questions from The Associated Press about restrictions on girls and women, saying he had nothing new to say on the matter while also indicating the status quo will remain. The ban on girls attending school beyond sixth grade was the first of what in the second year of Taliban control became a flurry of restrictions that now keep Afghan girls and women from classrooms, most jobs and much of public life.The Taliban seized power on August 15, 2021, as U.S. and NATO forces withdrew from the country after two decades of war. They marked their second anniversary as rulers of Afghanistan on Tuesday, which was declared a pu...

Reality Check: The truth hurts and truth is a bunch of ranked teams will break hearts in 2023

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 14:15:55 GMT

The first Reality Check of the college football season, following the release of the preseason AP Top 25, can be a real bummer.The truth hurts and the truth is a bunch of ranked teams won’t be as good as the voters think. Several will break their fans’ hearts and maybe even get their coach fired.Reality Check is here to remind fans of that. Sorry, not sorry.The past two seasons have been particularly volatile, each setting a record for most preseason ranked teams to fall out of the Top 25 by the end of the season.In 2021, that number was 14. Last season, it ticked up to 15 and included three preseason top-10 teams (Texas A&M, Oklahoma and Baylor) that failed to even post a winning record.The Aggies have been a special kind of disappointing the last two seasons, starting both at No. 6 in the country and ending both unranked.Reality Check continues its tradition of rolling through the preseason AP Top 25 and asking: How does this go wrong?No. 1 GeorgiaOpener: vs. UT Ma...

Aurora City Council opposes 'strong mayor' proposal 

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 14:15:55 GMT

AURORA, Colo. (KDVR) — Monday evening, Aurora City Council voted unanimously on a resolution that opposes Mayor Mike Coffman's "strong mayor system" proposal. Voters could decide the future of the proposal in November.The strong mayor proposal would give Aurora's mayor the authority to pick department heads and veto ordinances approved by the city council. Currently, the mayor cannot act on those decisions alone. Lawyers with Colorado connections indicted with Trump in Georgia City Councilmember Alison Coombs expressed concerns that the proposal could remove a layer of protection for city employees. Coffman feels it is time for Aurora to adapt to its growing city landscape.Officials said Monday afternoon the proposal was formally challenged.

Search underway for missing 83-year-old man with Alzheimer’s in Tamarac

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 14:15:55 GMT

Detectives from the Broward Sheriff’s Office Missing Persons Unit are seeking help from the public in locating an 83-year-old man who went missing from Tamarac on Monday evening.Felix Santiago was last seen around 8:30 p.m. on August 14, in the vicinity of the 10000 block of East Clairmont Circle. He was wearing a gray shirt and pants. Santiago, who suffers from Alzheimer’s disease, was driving a white 2020 Chevrolet Equinox with Florida license plate Z2PTQ.Authorities are urging the public to come forward with any information that could lead to Santiago’s whereabouts. BSO Missing Persons Detective Chris Blankenship can be reached at 954-321-4268. The BSO non-emergency number is available at 954-764-HELP (4357).

UN Security Council to discuss Nagorno-Karabakh crisis amid genocide warnings

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 14:15:55 GMT

YEREVAN — The U.N. Security Council has scheduled an emergency meeting to discuss the worsening humanitarian situation in the breakaway region of Nagorno-Karabakh, after Armenia urged the international community to help end Azerbaijan’s months-long blockade of the isolated territory.A schedule for the work of the Security Council, published late Monday night, confirmed that the appeal will be discussed on Wednesday. Armenia’s ambassador to the U.N., Mher Margaryan, last week wrote to the international conflict resolution body to warn Nagorno-Karabakh is “on the verge of a full-fledged humanitarian catastrophe.” The country’s Foreign Minister, Ararat Mirzoyan, will fly to New York to take part in the session.Inside Azerbaijan’s internationally recognized borders, the mountainous region is home to tens of thousands of ethnic Armenians, governed autonomously as an unrecognized, self-declared state since the fall of the Soviet Union. In 2020, the Azerbaijani gove...

Tractor-trailer truck crash closes all of Mass Pike eastbound in Framingham

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 14:15:55 GMT

Authorities say a crash involving a jackknifed tractor-trailer truck in Framingham is causing backups on the Mass Pike.MassDOT officials said on Twitter that as of 11 a.m., the crash was blocking all lanes of travel on the eastbound side of I-90 at mile marker 112.Authorities have not yet said whether there were any injuries or if other vehicles were involved in the crash.This is a developing story; stay with 7NEWS on-air and online for the latest updates.https://twitter.com/MassDOT/status/1691464114923859968

Mother of 6-year-old who shot first-grade teacher pleads guilty to state charge of felony child neglect

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 14:15:55 GMT

(CNN) — Deja Taylor, the mother of the 6-year-old who shot his first-grade teacher in January, pleaded guilty to a charge of felony child neglect Tuesday.The charge has a maximum statutory sentence of five years in prison. However, per a plea agreement, prosecutors have said they will not seek a punishment beyond the sentencing guidelines of six months.Judge Chris Papile said he reserves the right to sentence outside that recommendation.Taylor’s 6-year-old son shot his teacher, Abigail Zwerner, on January 6 at Richneck Elementary School leaving her with gunshots wounds to her hand and chest.As part of a plea deal, Taylor has also pleaded guilty to federal gun charges. Sentencing on those charges will take place in October.Taylor’s sentencing on the state charge is scheduled for October 27.Taylor purchased the gun and stored in the top shelf of her bedroom closet, secured by a trigger lock, her attorney James Ellenson told CNN in January. Police said her son brought th...

MBTA’s Chief Safety Officer to resign

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 14:15:55 GMT

One of the top safety officials at the MBTA will depart the transportation authority at the end of the month.In a message to MBTA employee, General Manager Phillip Eng announced that Chief Safety Officer Ron Ester would resign from his role effective Aug. 30.Ester previously worked at the Chicago Transit Authority before joining the MBTA three years ago, and played a role in “implementing recommendations, policies and practices following the 2019 Safety Panel Report, including the Safety Management System, our COVID response efforts and recovery, and the subsequent FTA Safety Management Inspection,” Eng stated.“I am grateful for Ron’s service to the MBTA. He has made a real difference in the safety of our system, and he will be missed,” Eng stated.Ester’s departure comes after the MBTA faced a slew of calls for action by the Federal Transit Administration, including orders to review numerous close-calls between trains and workers, cases of runaway train...

Who’s next in line if Yankees’ depleted rotation needs another starter?

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 14:15:55 GMT

ATLANTA — When the Yankees announced that Luis Severino would start against the Braves’ juggernaut lineup on Tuesday, many had a reasonable reaction.Why?Severino has been a disaster this season, which he’s called “the worst year of my life in baseball.” He’s also described himself as “the worst pitcher in the game.” With an 8.06 ERA entering Tuesday’s contest, he’s not far off.But the Yankees continue to send Severino to the mound each turn through the rotation. While he followed an opener his last time out on Aug. 9 — which predictably made no difference — the Yankees have, in some shape or form, stuck with the embattled starter.The truth is, they no longer have much of a choice.The Yankees’ rotation hasn’t been healthy all season, making Severino a cat with nine lives. The team is currently without Nestor Cortes, who may not return from a rotator cuff strain, and Carlos Rodón, who is expected ...

Mother of 6-year-old who shot first-grade teacher pleads guilty to child neglect

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 14:15:55 GMT

NEWPORT NEWS — The mother of a 6-year-old boy who garnered national headlines earlier this year when her son shot his first-grade teacher during class pleaded guilty Tuesday to a single count of felony child neglect.It was the second time in the past two months that Deja Nicole Taylor entered a guilty plea to charges relating to the Jan. 6 shooting of Richneck Elementary School teacher Abby Zwerner. The shot struck the 25-year-old educator in her hand and chest and left her seriously injured.In June, Taylor pleaded guilty in federal court to having a firearm while also possessing marijuana and lying on a federal gun background check about her drug use. She’s due to be sentenced in that case Oct. 18. Though the federal charges carry up to 25 years combined, prosecutors have agreed to ask for a term within the federal sentencing guidelines — between 18 months and two years.The child neglect count Taylor pleaded guilty to on Tuesday carries a maximum penalty of five years in pris...