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UK House of Commons set to back controversial migration bill

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:35:49 GMT

LONDON (AP) — A sweeping British bill that will dramatically curb migrants’ ability to seek asylum in the U.K. is due to be approved by lawmakers on Wednesday, despite critics’ allegations that it breaks international law.The government says the Illegal Migration Bill will deter tens of thousands of people from trying to reach the country in small boats across the English Channel each year.Although opposition lawmakers claim they have not had enough time to scrutinize it, it is likely to easily clear the House of Commons, where the governing Conservatives have a large majority.“This government has sought to railroad this deplorable, disgusting bill through the House of Commons,” said Stephen Flynn of the opposition Scottish National Party.The bill is likely to face strong opposition in Parliament’s upper chamber, the House of Lords, though the unelected Lords don’t have powers to block it completely.The legislation bars asylum claims by anyone who reaches the U.K. by unauthorized me...

Rogers partners with SpaceX, Lynk Global for satellite-to-phone coverage in Canada

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:35:49 GMT

Rogers Communications Inc. revealed a partnership with SpaceX and Lynk Global to bring satellite-to-phone coverage nationwide.Rogers President and CEO Tony Staffieri announced the collaboration on Wednesday. Staffieri said the agreement will aim to ensure Canadians stay connected in areas beyond the limits of traditional wireless networks.Rogers Communications Inc., SpaceX and Lynk Global will deliver a service to connect 5G and 4G phones in remote locations and rural highways. Lynk Global’s service will start with SMS texting and expand to include voice and data to help all Canadians reach 911 with 5G and 4G smartphones.Through SpaceX, the satellite-to-phone technology in Canada will utilize Starlink’s low earth orbit satellites and Rogers’ national wireless spectrum. Rogers and SpaceX will also begin with satellite coverage for SMS text and eventually provide voice and data across Canada’s most remote wilderness, national parks and rural highways.SpaceX Sta...

Uber driver sexually assaulted woman, stole phone to give him good review: police

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:35:49 GMT

York Regional Police are searching for a male Uber driver that allegedly sexually assaulted a female passenger in Vaughan and stole her phone to leave him a good review on the app.Authorities say the suspect was working as an Uber driver in a white 2021 Toyota Corolla on April 23 when he picked up an adult woman in the Yonge Street and Eglinton Avenue area in Toronto to transport her to Vaughan.The Uber driver allegedly pulled over into a parking lot in the Rutherford Road and Weston Road area in Vaughan, where he sexually assaulted the woman.Police said the male driver then took the victim’s phone, concluded the trip on the Uber app and gave himself a five-star review and a monetary tip.The woman got her phone back and exited the vehicle. The Uber driver then left the area.Police said the 26-year-old woman was not physically injured.The Uber driver was identified as 53-year-old Vikram Lather of Brampton. He’s facing one count of sexual assault and one count of fraud und...

Australian coal company withdraws plan for mine in Alberta foothills

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:35:49 GMT

An Australian coal company is withdrawing its plan for a mine in the Crowsnest Pass region of the eastern slopes of Alberta’s Rocky Mountains.In a letter, Montem Resources is asking the Alberta Energy Regulator to end the environmental impact assessment for its Tent Mountain proposal.The letter says the company will not be resuming mining for metallurgical coal at the site, which last operated in 1983.  CEO Peter Doyle says the company will instead be focusing efforts on building a renewable hydro project at the site. In February, Montem announced a deal with TransAlta in which the utility would acquire a 50 per cent interest in the plan to combine wind and hydro to generate renewable electricity. Doyle says a final decision on whether to proceed with the renewable energy plan will come in 2025. This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 26, 2023.The Canadian Press

Microsoft opens top cloud data processing hub in Poland

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:35:49 GMT

WARSAW, Poland (AP) — Microsoft said Wednesday it has launched a cloud service “region” in central Poland, the first large-scale data storage and processing hub of its kind in Central and Eastern Europe. The cloud region, which is part of Microsoft’s $1 billion IT transformation plan for Poland, consists of three separate physical locations around Warsaw. Microsoft says it will give businesses fast and reliable access to cloud services, accelerating the digitization of the economy and strengthening resilience and data security. Ralph Haupter, Microsoft’s president for Europe, Middle East and Africa, and Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki announced the launch while attending the European Economic Congress in Katowice, southern Poland.“The war in Ukraine has made us all acutely aware how very important cybersecurity is and protection against the flood of fake news and propaganda tricks that Russia excels in,” Morawiecki said to stress that Microsoft’s state-of-...

Dolton man charged in 2021 fatal hit-and-run on North Side

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:35:49 GMT

CHICAGO — A man has been charged in a 2021 shooting that led to a fatal hit-and-run crash on the city's North Side.Ollonzo Wilson, 38 of Dolton, has been charged with murder, aggravated discharge of a firearm and failure to report an accident/death.According to police, Wilson was arrested Monday after being identified as the person responsible for a fatal crash that happened on Oct. 3, 2021 in the 2400 block of West Irving Park Road. Woman carjacked at gunpoint by 5 men in Lincoln Park: police Police said Wilson discharged a firearm before fleeing at a high-rate of speed and caused the crash that killed 37-year-old Janelle Gardiner and injured a 27-year-old man.Wilson is expected in bond court Wednesday.

Fauci acknowledges 'problems' after scathing report on pandemic response

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:35:49 GMT

(The Hill) -- Anthony Fauci, the former director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, acknowledged “problems” in the country’s COVID-19 management following a scathing report on the U.S. response. Fauci told CNN’s Kaitlan Collins in an interview on Wednesday that the U.S. had a “fractionated” response and needed to deal with significant polarization of the pandemic. He said officials had believed that the U.S. was the best-prepared country from a science point of view, demonstrated through the rapid development of the COVID-19 vaccine, but challenges happened in other areas. “There were a lot of problems, Kaitlan, that we had,” Fauci said on “CNN This Morning."He noted that the U.S. struggled with implementing public health measures, having a uniform response and clear communication, as well as being able to get data “in real time.” Fauci added that the country should look to learn from the issues that happened during the pandemic to have...

5 honored for rescuing missing boy, 3, from New York train tracks

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:35:49 GMT

NEW YORK (WPIX) - A group of transit workers have been honored for rescuing a 3-year-old boy with autism who was found on a New York train track earlier this month, officials said. The five Metropolitan Transit Authority employees - Shawn Loughran, Williams Kennedy, Marcus Higgins, Max Chong and Christopher Fraina - were hailed as heroes during a commendation ceremony Tuesday. (Credit: MTA)“Everybody’s quick thinking and the perfect timing allowed us to get this child off the tracks and back to his family," Kennedy said. On April 6, the Metro-North crew saw the child was stuck on the top of the third rail on the northbound train tracks near the Tarrytown station. A video released by the MTA showed the train slowing down before Higgins jumped onto the tracks and sprinted 40 yards to retrieve the toddler. The team then took the child back to the Tarrytown station to be evaluated. MTA supervisor randomly attacked on subway platform: ‘It happened so quick’ During the ordeal, Chong ...

Mushroom hunters discover 2 bodies in Missouri woods

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:35:49 GMT

PEVELY, Mo. (KTVI) – For the second time in one week, a mushroom hunter in Missouri discovered human remains. In Pevely, the remains are believed to be evidence of the city's first murder since the '90s.The woman's body was found by Jill Rodgers, who was out in the woods looking for morel mushrooms Sunday. "I was walking up the hill, and I was coming near this long tree that was laid over," said Rodgers. "There was something huge laying down on the ground. There was a moving blanket, so I pulled that back. I took a big tree limb and lifted it up, and it clearly looked like a foot, a human foot."Pevely police and the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office are awaiting autopsy results from the medical examiner to find out the age and name of the woman, who is currently unidentified.The circumstances of her death are suspicious, police said. "When you're in a community that is a close-knit community, it's a shock," said Chief Mark Glenn of the Pevely Police Department. "That emotional part ...

Nashville student barred from prom for wearing suit getting private prom

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:35:49 GMT

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — The Nashville community is stepping up to throw the ultimate prom for a Nashville Christian School student who was reportedly not allowed to attend their senior prom for choosing to wear a suit instead of a dress."It was brave of them to make the sign and stand out in the front of their prom and it was powerful," Nashville business owner Derek Van Mol explained.The post by Nashville Christian School senior B Hayes on Instagram showed the student in a black suit holding a sign that said, "They wouldn't let me in because I'm in a suit." PREVIOUS: Nashville Christian School student barred from attending prom for wearing suit In the post, B wrote, “I should not have to conform to femininity to attend my senior prom. I will not compromise who I am to fit in a box. Who are you to tell us what it means to be a woman?”Nashville Christian School said in a statement that it has "established dress requirements for daily school attendance and at our special events. A...