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China trying to ‘headhunt’ powerful Brits, UK government claims

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:35:47 GMT

LONDON — Chinese spies are actively trying to recruit Brits “with sensitive knowledge and experience,” the U.K. government claimed Thursday, as it defended its efforts to clamp down on interference by Beijing.In a long-awaited response to a piercing report about the U.K.’s efforts to take on Chinese spying, Rishi Sunak’s government said some of Beijing’s work “crosses the line from influence into interference” — and accepted it needs to up its game.The report came as Westminster continues to digest news that a British parliamentary researcher with links to senior Conservatives had been arrested in March on suspicion of spying for China, as first reported by the Sunday Times. The researcher, who has not been charged with an offense, has insisted he is “completely innocent” in a statement issued by his lawyers.Parliament’s cross-party intelligence and security committee warned in July that Britain has so far proven “comp...

ECB lifts interest rates to record high, even as it slashes growth outlook

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:35:47 GMT

FRANKFURT — The European Central Bank raised its key deposit rate to an all-time high, but signaled that it thinks it has done enough to end the worst bout of inflation in four decades. “Based on its current assessment, the Governing Council considers that the key ECB interest rates have reached levels that, maintained for a sufficiently long duration, will make a substantial contribution to the timely return of inflation to the target,” the ECB said in a statement.The move showed that, in the near term at least, the bank is still more concerned about inflation staying above target than about risking a recession. “The ECB didn’t blink in the face of growing speculation that it would hit pause on the rate-hiking cycle,” said UBS economist Dean Turner after the announcement.  “We expect this to be the last hike from the ECB in this cycle, but that does not mean the era of tight monetary policy is over. Interest rates are likely to remain at these lev...

Herald High School Database: Passing, running, receiving leaders Week 1

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:35:47 GMT

The Herald is following all the top passing, running and receiving leaders in high school football this season. Keep coming back right here for more. Coaches are encouraged to report their results each week to [email protected]. Here we go…Next up, rushing leaders:Next up, receiving leaders:Related ArticlesHigh School Sports | Spice up Sunday football with tasty, easy snacks High School Sports | The little town that builds NFL footballs — all 480,000 of them High School Sports | Boston University CTE study: 41% of contact sport athletes who died young had CTE High School Sports | 17th annual Boston Herald preseason all-EMass football team LC’s Aidan Virella falls backwards after pulling in the long pass under coverage of NEMV’s Isaiah Bueno as Lowell Catholic takes on Northeast/Mystic Valley in football on September 9, 2023 in , Wakefield, MA. (Stuart Cahill/Boston Herald)The Barnstable cheerleaders had ...

Man hit by Amtrak train in San Diego dies

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:35:47 GMT

SAN DIEGO -- A man was killed Wednesday night after being struck by an Amtrak train in the Harborview area, authorities said.According to the San Diego County Sheriff's Office, the incident occurred around 11:07 p.m. near the intersection of California Street and Grape Street. Lufthansa Airlines to expand nonstop flight service from San Diego Responding San Diego Police Department officers found a man who was hit by a southbound Amtrak train. He was transported to a local hospital, but authorities say he did not survive his injuries.The Sheriff's Transit Enforcement Unit (TEU) investigates incidents along the routes of the North County Transit District which Amtrak uses. SDPD requested the Sheriff's TEU respond to conduct the investigation. American Red Cross calls on San Diegans to donate blood amid national shortage The Medical Examiner's Office will work to identify the man, as well as determine cause and manner of death pending notification of his family.Anyone with informa...

Trash bags full of matches triggers fire inside warehouse in North County

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:35:47 GMT

OCEANSIDE, Calif. -- A fire inside a commercial building in North County prompted a response from the Oceanside Fire Department Wednesday.According to fire officials, a fire alarm at a large warehouse on the 2600 block of Vista Pacific Drive detected smoke at 12:52 p.m. Man hit by Amtrak train in San Diego dies It was discovered to have been triggered by a large quantity of matches being stored inside the warehouse, OFD explained. The matches were reportedly being stored inside 15 large trash bags and 100 55-gallon drums. The burning of the matches filled the building with toxic smoke and set off the fire sprinkler system, said fire officials. While the sprinkler system kept the fire in check, fire department units made access inside the structure to completely extinguish the burning materials. OFD says ladder truck was also sent to the roof to perform "vertical ventilation" in order to release the smoke. Removing the smoke enabled a better environment for interior crews to search...

Over 3 years after it was stolen, a van Gogh painting is recovered but with some damage

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:35:47 GMT

BRUSSELS (AP) — More than three years after it was stolen from a museum that was shut to prevent the spread of the coronavirus, a painting by Dutch master Vincent van Gogh has been recovered, a little worse for wear, the Groninger Museum in the Netherlands said Tuesday.Van Gogh’s “The Parsonage Garden at Nuenen in Spring,” which was painted in 1884, was snatched in an overnight raid in March 2020 from The Singer Laren museum east of Amsterdam. It was there on loan from the Groninger Museum.“The Groninger Museum is extremely happy and relieved that the work is back,” its director, Andreas Blühm, said in a statement. “We are very grateful to everyone who contributed to this good outcome.”The museum paid tribute to Dutch art sleuth Arthur Brand for his “key role in this case.”It declined to provide further details about how it was found. It said “the painting has suffered, but is – at first glance – still in good condition.” The work will be scientifically examined in coming months. It...

As climate risks increase, New York could require flood disclosures in home sales

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:35:47 GMT

HIGHLAND FALLS, N.Y. (AP) — Alan Oligario’s home is prone to flooding — and he wishes someone had told him before he bought it. His initial flood came in the first year after he bought the house in Highland Falls, New York. The second came about a decade later. The third occurred in July when torrential rains drenched the region and he woke up to water about knee deep in his home. “If we were made aware, or if our neighbors were made aware of the flooding situation, some things might have been done differently,” said Oligario, adding that he wouldn’t have bought his home or at least would have sprung for flood insurance if he had known. A bill in New York could soon require people selling their homes to disclose whether their properties have been flooded or are at risk for future flooding — a move supporters argue is necessary as rising sea levels and intense storms with climate change lead to more flooding in the state.State lawmakers passed the proposal earlier this ye...

F-35 fighter jets land in NATO-member Denmark to replace F-16s, some of which will go to Ukraine

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:35:47 GMT

COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) — Four F-35 fighter jets landed Thursday at an airbase in Denmark in the first installment of the U.S.-made planes ordered by the NATO member to replace its aging fleet of F-16s, some of which have been promised to Ukraine.Dignitaries and officers clapped as the planes, in Danish Air Force colors, did several flyovers before landing at the Skyrdstrup Air Base.Ukraine has been asking for Western fighter jets to help it resist the Russian invasion that began in February 2022. The United States recently gave its approval for Denmark and the Netherlands to provide Ukraine with the American-made jets. Last month, the two countries said they would donate F-16 aircraft to Ukraine, with Denmark pledging 19 and the Netherlands an unspecified number. Denmark said it would need to receive new F-35s first, and Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said in August that she hoped the first six F-16s could be handed over to Ukraine around New Year.NATO member Norway also ...

Scotland player out of Rugby World Cup after slipping on stairs. Not the sport’s first weird injury

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:35:47 GMT

Scotland forward Dave Cherry is out of the Rugby World Cup in France after slipping on the stairs at the team hotel, banging his head and sustaining a concussion.His tournament is over in bizarre circumstances after only one game.Rugby is an ultra-physical sport and injuries are pretty common during games. But Cherry isn’t the first player to get hurt in a weird way on his time off.Some of rugby’s tough men have come unstuck grappling with dogs, dishwashers and even an out-of-control fire.DOG BITEItaly prop Martin Castrogiovanni missed a game in the Six Nations tournament in 2015 after he was bitten on the nose by a friend’s dog. The Italian team called it a “minor household accident” but Castrogiovanni needed 14 stitches, showing doggy wasn’t messing around.As a front-row forward, Castrogiovanni was used to facing up to some of the hardest men in rugby but clearly lost this particular confrontation. It wasn’t clear what breed of dog it was.DON’T ...

Trump won’t be tried with Powell and Chesebro next month in Georgia election case

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:35:47 GMT

ATLANTA (AP) — A Georgia judge ruled Thursday that former President Donald Trump and 16 others will be tried separately from two defendants who are set to go to trial next month in the case accusing them of participating in an illegal scheme to overturn the results of the 2020 election.Lawyers Sidney Powell and Kenneth Chesebro had filed demands for a speedy trial, and Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee set their trial to begin Oct. 23. Trump and other defendants had asked to be tried separately from Powell and Chesebro, with some saying they could not be ready by the late October trial date.Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis last month obtained an indictment against 19 people charging them under the state’s anti-racketeering law.Kate Brumback, The Associated Press