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Pro-Israel Fund Manager Invested $500M in Israeli Arms Firm. Now Activist Investors Want Answers.

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:53:09 GMT

The Canadian bank that holds the largest foreign share of an Israeli weapons manufacturer is coming under scrutiny from human rights groups over its stake in the company.Last fall, Scotiabank, one of Canada’s largest banks, was reported by Bloomberg to have become a major shareholder in Elbit Systems, Israel’s premier defense contractor. On Tuesday, at a shareholder meeting, a representative of the ethical investing activist group Ek? delivered a petition on behalf of 12,000 signatories calling on Scotiabank to divest from the firm.“Since the petition started in October, we have asked Scotiabank to divest from Elbit Systems. This is a company whose weapons have caused countless civilian deaths,” said Angus Wong, the senior campaign manager from Ek?, the group formerly known as SumOfUs. “The question is not why they own shares — it is why they are the biggest foreign shareholder in Elbit. We demand to know why Scotiabank is investing hundreds of millions of dollars of funds from midd...

DC region prepares for severe storms, possible hail Thursday

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:53:09 GMT

People the D.C. area should get their wet weather gear ready to go for the strong storms that will come Thursday afternoon and evening. Here’s what you need to know to prepare.Heavy rain is expected to fall at some point during the afternoon and into the evening, 7News First Alert meteorologist Veronica Johnson said.Listen to WTOP online and on the radio at 103.5 FM or 107.7 FM.Current traffic conditionsWeather forecastClosings and DelaysSign up for WTOP alerts“Storms could pack a punch with some high winds, even some hail. And well, we’re certainly going to get some brief heavy rain,” Johnson said.Temperatures will be in the upper 70s to mid-80s and it will be mostly cloudy overnight, 7News First Alert meteorologist Steve Rudin said.There will be a wide range of rainfall totals from 0.10 inches to over 0.50 inches expected in some neighborhoods, 7News First Alert meteorologist Eileen Whelan said.Friday will feel noticeably different, with lower humidity and ...

Court rules documents in Sanford case must be unsealed

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:53:09 GMT

The South Dakota Supreme Court ruled Thursday that affidavits from an investigation into child pornography allegations against billionaire philanthropist T. Denny Sanford must be unsealed.In 2019, South Dakota investigators searched his email account, as well as his cellular and internet service providers, for evidence of possession of child pornography, after his accounts were flagged by a technology firm.Sanford, the state’s richest man, was not charged after the South Dakota attorney general’s office said its investigation into the allegations found no prosecutable offenses within the state’s jurisdiction.Sanford had sought to bar affidavits used to issue search warrants in the case. But the Sioux Falls Argus Leader and ProPublica argued in court that the documents should be made public. After the decision not to file charges, Judge James Power ordered in June 2022 that South Dakota law required the affidavits to be unsealed. They were kept sealed while Sanford’s attorneys ...

EPA proposes limiting chemical plant pollution

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:53:09 GMT

In what could prove a significant move for communities facing air pollution, the Environmental Protection Agency proposed on Thursday that chemical plants nationwide measure certain hazardous compounds that cross beyond their property lines and reduce them when they are too high.The proposed rules would reduce cancer risk and other exposure for communities that live close to harmful emitters, the EPA said. The data would be made public and the results would force companies to fix problems that increase emissions. “This is probably the most significant rule I’m experiencing in my 30 years of working in cancer alley,” said Beverly Wright executive director of the Deep South Center for Environmental Justice and member of the White House Environmental Justice Advisory Council. She referred to an area dense petrochemical industry development along the Gulf coast. In the past, Wright said, even when emissions caused harm, residents weren’t able to sue and reduce the threat.The proposed me...

Biden review of chaotic Afghan withdrawal blames Trump

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:53:09 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — An interagency review led by the National Security Council of the chaotic 2021 withdrawal of U.S. troops from Afghanistan largely lays the blame on former President Donald Trump, saying President Joe Biden was “severely constrained” by the decisions of his predecessor.The White House on Thursday publicly released a 12-page summary of the results of the so-called “hotwash” of U.S. policies around the ending of the nation’s longest war, taking little responsibility for its own actions. The administration said most of the after-action reviews, which were transmitted privately to Congress on Thursday, were highly classified and would not be released publicly.“President Biden’s choices for how to execute a withdrawal from Afghanistan were severely constrained by conditions created by his predecessor,” the White House summary states, noting that when Biden entered office, “the Taliban were in the strongest military position that they had been in since 2001, c...

Emergency funds: How much you should save and how to get started

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:53:09 GMT

This content is sponsored by PenFed Credit Union, federally insured by NCUA.Emergencies can happen at any time. You may need a new roof, to fix a broken refrigerator or make up for lost income. Making sure you have an emergency savings fund is vital to help you get through a season of tough financial times.Emergency savings funds can help you pay for any large and unplanned expenses and are an important part of your financial security. And not all Americans are saving with an emergency in mind. Nearly half (49 percent) of U.S. adults have less savings (39 percent) or no savings (10 percent) compared to a year ago, according to a February Bankrate survey of 1,000 adults. In fact, the survey found that more than one in three Americans have more credit card debt than emergency savings — the highest percentage in 12 years of Bankrate asking this survey question.The experts at PenFed Credit Union encourage an emergency savings fund because “it serves as your financial safety net, e...

Patrol: Missouri tornado victims were in trailer or camper

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:53:09 GMT

The five people who were killed when a tornado barreled through their Missouri village were inside a mobile home or adjacent camper that were obliterated, authorities said Thursday.The Missouri State Highway Patrol released the names of the victims. Glenn Burcks, 62, lived in the mobile home. Susan Sullivan, 57, also lived there along with her 37-year-old nephew, James Skaggs. Also killed were Sullivan’s 16-year-old granddaughter, Destinee Nicole Koenig of Sikeston, Missouri, and 18-year-old Michael McCoy. Koenig’s obituary said McCoy was her boyfriend.The tornado strafed a 22-mile (35-kilometer) stretch of southeastern Missouri, including Glenallen, starting shortly after 3:30 a.m. Wednesday. It came during a week of violent storms and tornadoes in the central and southern U.S., including Kentucky, where National Weather Service said Thursday that it was surveying damage from three EF-1 twisters that touched down.Glenallen, which is home to only about 60 people and sits...

Police: Abducted woman dead after shootout on I-95 in Va.

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:53:09 GMT

A woman who police say was abducted from her home in New York is dead after a shootout and police chase in Prince William County, Virginia, Wednesday night.The man suspected of abducting 34-year-old Tatiana David early Wednesday morning — identified as Michael C. Davis, of Richmond — was also shot and suffered life-threatening injuries, police said.Authorities in New York said David and Davis had been in a previous relationship and had a 4-year-old child together.Davis was suspected of abducting David shortly after 7:20 a.m. Wednesday in the town of Ithaca in upstate New York after a witness saw the woman being forced into the white SUV by Davis against her will, according to police.ABDUCTED ADULT ALERT: Tatiana David, 34, was last seen on West Hill Circle in the city of Ithaca, Tompkins Co. at 7:20 AM on April 5. She was last seen with Michael Davis who was driving a white SUV. If located do not approach and contact 911.More: https://t.co/vjRd4epcEn pic.twitter.com/O5aJz4hOlx— NYS ...

Autoridades mexicanas buscan a 23 personas desaparecidas en San Luis Potosí

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:53:09 GMT

(CNN) — Las autoridades mexicanas buscan a 23 personas provenientes de Guanajuato que desaparecieron en el vecino estado de San Luis Potosí, según le dijo a CNN una fuente de la Gobernación de Guanajuato este jueves.Aclaró que el grupo de 16 personas que la Fiscalía de San Luis Potosí anunció este miércoles por la noche que había sido localizado corresponde a otro incidente.Alvar Cabeza de Vaca, secretario de Seguridad Pública del estado de Guanajuato, informó en Twitter que se desplazaron dos helicópteros “que cuentan con alta tecnología” que se sumarán a las autoridades de San Luis Potosí para el rastreo de los desaparecidos.Son dos helicópteros que cuentan con alta tecnología y visión infrarroja e instrumental para vuelo nocturno que se sumarán coordinadamente con las autoridades del @GobEdoSLP para rastreo, búsqueda y en su caso localización de las personas desaparecidas. (2/2) pic.twitter.com/5BHk9Yi1ZB— Alvar Cabeza de Vaca (@AlvarCdeV) April 6, 2023La secretaria de Gobi...

Montgomery County launches accelerator to bring cutting-edge tech to hospitality sector

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:53:09 GMT

The Montgomery County Economic Development Corporation (MCEDC) has launched a tech accelerator to introduce promising technologies to an industry that plays such a vital role in the county’s economy: hospitality.The accelerator debuted this week with a cohort of six companies, all developing technologies focused on sustainability. MCEDC chose sustainability as the theme of the first cohort after noticing that homegrown companies like Bethesda’s Marriott International Inc. and Rockville’s Choice Hotels International Inc. had been setting aggressive targets for things like reducing waste and lowering carbon emissions. Marriott (NASDAQ: MAR), for example, has said that by 2025 it wants to reduce food waste by 50% and generate a minimum of 30% of its energy from renewable sources. Choice Hotels (NYSE: CHH) has set its own sustainability initiatives, such as phasing out the use of single-use polystyrene by 2023 and eliminating single-use shampoos and other bath amenit...