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Lebanon’s finance minister questioned in Central Bank probe

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:33:44 GMT

BEIRUT (AP) — A European judicial team questioned Lebanon’s caretaker finance minister on Friday in an investigation related to corruption probes of the country’s Central Bank governor, officials said.The questioning is part of a probe by a delegation from France, Germany, and Luxembourg, now on its third visit to Lebanon to interrogate suspects and witnesses in the case. Central Bank Governor Riad Salameh is being investigated abroad over several financial crimes and the laundering of some $330 million.During Friday’s session, caretaker Finance Minister Youssef El Khalil was questioned about his work as a close associate of Salameh while working at the Central Bank, before he became a Cabinet minister, officials said. They spoke on condition of anonymity because of the ongoing probe. El Khalil worked for the Central Bank from 1982 until he became finance minister nearly two years ago and was last the executive director of its financial operations department.On Thursday, the E...

2 mass shootings in 2 days plunge Serbia into shock, dismay

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:33:44 GMT

BELGRADE, Serbia (AP) — The first shooting left Serbia weeping. The second set off waves of soul-searching in a deeply divided nation, awash in weaponry, where war criminals are glorified and memories run deep of years of civil war.Two mass killings in two days. Nineteen people dead and 21 injured. "We walked around like zombies for 24 hours, not believing what has happened and looking for reasons,” President Aleksandar Vucic, a populist authoritarian who began his political career as a far-right Serbian nationalist during the Yugoslav civil wars, said Friday in a nationwide TV address. The back-to-back bloodshed sent shockwaves through a Balkan nation scarred by wars, but unused to mass murders. Though Serbia is full of weapons left over from the conflicts of the 1990s, the last mass shooting before this week was in 2013, when a war veteran killed 13 people in a central Serbian village.In Thursday's attack, a gunman apparently firing at random killed eight people and wounded 14 in ...

Five things to watch in King Charles III's coronation

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:33:44 GMT

(The Hill) - On Saturday, the U.K. will hold a coronation ceremony to formalize the reign of King Charles III and Queen Consort Camilla, an affair filled with pomp and pageantry that will draw a crowd of notable political and societal figures.The U.K. is the only European country to hold a coronation ceremony, a tradition that dates back to 1066. King Charles III's celebration will be held at London's Westminster Abbey, the site of several other glitzy royal affairs including the 2011 nuptials of Prince William and Princess Kate of Wales.The ceremony, dubbed Operation Golden Orb, will be the first in Britain in 70 years. All major U.S. and U.K. networks will be broadcasting the event, slated to begin at 11 a.m. local time, or 6 a.m. EST and 3 a.m. PST. Here's what to look for in Saturday's ceremony:Reactions from statesideMadeline Monroe/Greg NashFormer President Trump has already shared his thoughts surrounding the historic event, slamming President Biden in a recent interview for ...

Matt Mervis won't wait long to make MLB debut with Cubs

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:33:44 GMT

CHICAGO — As the Cubs begin a homestand at Wrigley Field, one of their best prospects is beginning his Major League Baseball career. Manager David Ross made sure Matt Mervis wouldn't have to wait long to take the field. On Friday morning, the Cubs not only officially announced the call-up of the power-hitting first baseman to the major league roster but also that he'll be in the starting lineup for Friday's series opener with the Marlins at Wrigley Field. Mervis will be in the lineup at first base and will bat seventh for the club as he gets to play in the first game he's been with the club. Miguel Amaya, who made his MLB debut on Thursday against the Nationals in Washington, will take the field for the second game of his career as he'll catch starting pitcher Justin Steele and bat ninth. This marks a fast rise for the former Duke University player through the Cubs system after he was signed as an undrafted free agent in 2020. Mervis caught the eye of many around minor league baseba...

Who are the 5 greatest Kentucky Derby-winning horses of all time?

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:33:44 GMT

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDKY) — The lore and pageantry of the Kentucky Derby have been etched in racing history since its inaugural running in 1875, but some winners of "The Run for the Roses" stand apart. Long-shot winners like Rich Strike in 2022 and blazing-fast times like those achieved by Secretariat in 1973 have cemented the race as one of the most memorable sporting events each year. Kentucky native to perform National Anthem at 149th Derby Some names have become synonymous with Churchill Downs over the 148 years of The Derby. Feel free to sip a mint julep as we look back at the greatest Kentucky Derby-winning horses.5. Whirlaway (1941)Whirlaway was bred at Calumet Farm in Lexington, Kentucky. The thoroughbred was known as “Mr. Longtail” due to his abnormally long tail that would blow far behind him while he was racing.Trainer Ben Jones told jockey Eddie Arcaro to ride the horse around 10 feet off the inner rail. Arcaro was able to keep Whirlaway on a straight path, and the horse...

Do not use: FDA issues warning about recalled COVID-19 tests due to bacterial contamination

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:33:44 GMT

(WHTM) -- The U.S. Food and Drug Administration issued a safety warning against the use of some recalled at-home COVID-19 tests. The FDA says SD Biosensor Inc. Pilot COVID-19 at-home tests, which are distributed by Roche Diagnostics, have been recalled over concerns of bacterial contamination in the liquid solution that comes in the test kits. The FDA is urging both consumers and health care providers to stop using the affected tests. Ford recalls some vehicles for air bag inflator installation According to the FDA, direct contact with the contaminated liquid could pose a safety concern such as possible skin irritation or bacterial infection. The contamination could also affect the performance of the test, including potentially false results, the FDA says. None of the impacted tests were distributed through the U.S. government's Free at Home COVID-19 tests program.Around 500,000 of the recalled tests were distributed to CVS Health, and around 16,000 went to Amazon. The FDA and ...

COVID was fourth-leading cause of death in 2022

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:33:44 GMT

(The Hill) -- COVID-19 was the fourth leading cause of death in the U.S. in 2022, falling by one step after having been the third leading cause of death the preceding two years.According to provisional mortality data released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), COVID-19 was the leading cause of death last year behind heart disease, cancer and unintentional injury.The overall death rate in the country fell by 5.3 percent between 2021 and 2022. The SARS-CoV-2 virus was reported as an underlying cause of or contributing factor to 244,986 deaths or 7.5 percent of U.S. deaths last year."COVID-19, the third leading cause of death in 2021, fell to fourth place in 2022 because of the large decrease in COVID-19–associated deaths compared with those in 2021," according to the CDC's Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. "The number of deaths caused by unintentional injury, largely driven by a high number of drug overdose deaths, remained high in 2022 compared with 2021." ...

Vikings need cornerbacks Andrew Booth Jr. and Akayleb Evans to take on bigger roles

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:33:44 GMT

Since the Vikings selected a whopping 10 players in the 2022 NFL Draft, general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah has preached the importance of development.In his eyes, if that particular draft class takes a big jump from Year 1 to Year 2, the Vikings will be in a good spot moving forward.No group serves as a better litmus test to that theory than the cornerback position.After drafting Andrew Booth Jr. and Akayleb Evans in 2022, the Vikings suddenly need both players to take on bigger roles. There’s been a ton of turnover at the cornerback position for the Vikings this offseason with Patrick Peterson, Cam Dantzler, Duke Shelley, Chandon Sullivan, and Kris Boyd all signing with different teams.Though the Vikings signed Byron Murphy in free agency, picked Mekhi Blackmon in the 2023 NFL Draft, and added a couple of depth players in Joejuan Williams and John Reid, Booth and Evans will be heavily relied upon next season. They are ready for the challenge.The biggest thing for Booth and Ev...

What should the Timberwolves do this offseason? Here’s a suggestion

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:33:44 GMT

Timberwolves coach Chris Finch cited internal development as the team’s biggest path for growth at the conclusion of the 2021-22 season. And then Minnesota made a seismic trade for 7-foot-4 center Rudy Gobert roughly two months later.Perhaps Finch wasn’t being entirely truthful in the moment, but what’s more likely is that NBA teams frankly don’t know what opportunities for roster change will present themselves once free agency and the draft hit and trade talks heat up and take unexpected turns.Which is why though Finch and Timberwolves basketball boss Connelly sounded largely committed to Minnesota’s current roster construction during exit interviews with the media last week, that provides no guarantee the Timberwolves will indeed “run it back” next season.Minds change, as do circumstances and opportunities.Anthony Edwards will be a member of the Timberwolves next fall — that’s all but guaranteed. Everything else beyond that is up in the air.In the midst of uncertainty, here’s one ...

April hiring gains reflect a still-resilient U.S. job market; 235,000 jobs added

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:33:44 GMT

America’s employers added a healthy 253,000 jobs in April, evidence of a labor market that still shows surprising resilience despite rising interest rates, chronically high inflation and a banking crisis that could weaken the economy.The unemployment rate dipped to 3.4%, matching a 54-year low, the Labor Department said Friday. The jobless rate fell in part, though, because 43,000 people left the labor force, the first drop since November, and were no longer counted as unemployed.In its report Friday, the government noted that while hiring was solid in April, it was much weaker in February and March than it had previously estimated. Job gains for those months was downgraded by a combined 149,000. And hourly wages rose last month at the fastest pace since July, which may alarm the inflation fighters at the Federal Reserve.April’s hiring gain compares with 165,000 in March and 248,000 in February and is still at a level considered vigorous by historical standards. The job market has r...