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UN chief says Haiti urgently needs international security force and humanitarian aid

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 12:33:43 GMT

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP) — U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres visited Haiti on Saturday and again called on foreign governments with strong security forces to help the struggling country fight a surge in gang violence.The appeal was made after Guterres met with Prime Minister Ariel Henry, civil society leaders, U.N. staff and the heads of various political parties during his one-day trip.“Now is not the time to forget Haiti or weaken our solidarity with its people,” he said.Guterres met with reporters at Haiti’s international airport in Port-au-Prince, who pressed him on whether an international security force would be deployed as requested by the prime minister last October.Guterres said he spoke about the issue with Henry, as well as the need to hold credible elections.“I am not here to tell Haitians what to do. I am here to listen to them and to encourage them to build consensus as broadly as possible to move the transition process forward,” he said.Henry, who has been run...

NASCAR Cup Series drivers praise setting for 1st street race in downtown Chicago

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 12:33:43 GMT

CHICAGO (AP) — Before NASCAR raced in the Los Angeles Coliseum in 2022, Kevin Harvick thought it was going to be a disaster. It didn’t take very long for the event to win him over.Heading into the Cup Series’ first street race, Harvick is keeping an open mind.“Going through all these new types of events kind of changes your mindset to how you approach it,” he said, “because you see the enthusiasm, right, like you can feel it, you can see it.”After months of hype and curiosity, the NASCAR Cup Series hits the streets of downtown Chicago on Sunday at the end of a big weekend for the sport that includes concerts and other entertainment.The 12-turn, 2.2-mile course includes seven 90-degree turns. There are lots of ways to get into trouble, including manhole covers, and transitions from concrete to asphalt and back. Getting in and out of pit road in front of Buckingham Fountain could become an issue, and restarts also could be an adventure.“It’s obviously narrow in secti...

NASCAR postpones Saturday's Chicago Street Race due to inclement weather

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 12:33:43 GMT

CHICAGO — NASCAR has announced that Saturday's Xfinity Series’ Loop 121 street race has been postponed due to weather and lightning in the downtown Chicago area.The race will now resume at 10 a.m., with gates opening to the general public at 9 a.m.While NASCAR officials had hoped to complete the event on Saturday, asking spectators to take shelter and any necessary precautions while inclement weather passed, the decision was made just after 6:30 p.m. to suspend the Loop 121 street race until Sunday. What happens if bad weather hits the NASCAR Chicago Street Races? Severe weather was a cause of concern as Chicago was set to hold the inaugural Chicago Street Race weekend. WGN meteorologist Mike Janssen said there was a 50% chance of storms for Saturday when the Xfinity Race was scheduled to start at 4 p.m.While some NASCAR races have continued in the rain, lightning in the area proved too great a hurdle for drivers.If this computer forecast model is close to accurate, racing tomor...

Texas couple sues over historical balcony tied to KKK

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 12:33:43 GMT

SAN MARCOS, Texas (KXAN) — A couple in central Texas is suing the city of San Marcos over a century-old metal balcony on their home. On the balcony is the initial of a previous homeowner who had historical ties to the Ku Klux Klan. The letter "Z" is at the center of the lawsuit. Kristy Money and her husband Rolf Straubhaar are taking on the City of San Marcos and its Director of Planning and Development Services. These are the ‘least hot’ cities in Texas "It doesn't represent our family's values," Money said. History of the "Z"The metal decor sits on top of a balcony on their home in the Burleson Historic District. According to the lawsuit, previous homeowner Frank Zimmerman installed it. Money said it wasn't until she did more research into Frank Zimmerman that she found out about his ties with the KKK. (Photo: KXAN) Money said it wasn't until she did more research into Frank Zimmerman that she found out about his ties with the KKK. (Photo: KXAN) Money said she and her husband d...

Anti-Trump video shared by DeSantis campaign is 'homophobic,' says conservative LGBT group

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 12:33:43 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — A prominent group that represents LGBT conservatives says a video shared by Ron DeSantis ′ presidential campaign that slams rival Donald Trump for his past support of gay and transgender people “ventured into homophobic territory.”The “DeSantis War Room” Twitter account shared the video on Friday — the last day of June's LGBTQ+ Pride Month — that features footage of Trump at the Republican National Convention in 2016 saying he would “do everything in my power to protect our LGBTQ citizens." Trump had been pledging protection from terrorist attacks weeks after the shootings at the Pulse Nightclub, a gay nightclub in Orlando, Florida, that was the deadliest mass shooting in U.S. history at that time.The video also highlights "LGBTQ for Trump" T-shirts sold by the former president's campaign and his past comments saying he would be comfortable with Caitlyn Jenner, the former Olympic decathlete who came out as a transgender woman in 201...

State of Texas: Families, inmates raise concerns about dangerous heat for Texas prisoners

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 12:33:43 GMT

AUSTIN (Nexstar) — A 35-year-old inmate died of cardiac arrest on the morning of June 23 while mowing a field at the Goree Unit in Huntsville, the Texas Department of Criminal Justice confirmed Tuesday.TDCJ identified the deceased inmate as Tommy McCullough from McKinney, Texas. McCullough's family is seeking more information as they raise concerns over the conditions during the summer heat."We received a call yesterday afternoon that he passed away due to a heat stroke because he was made to stay out mowing even with heat advisory and very minimal water," McCullough's sisters said. "If you have a loved one in the Texas prison system, please check on them."In Texas' state jails, the inmates are sentenced to just two years or less. But every summer, former inmate Maggie Luna remembers, the women inside worried their short sentences may take their life."All of these women that were suffering with me had not a lot of time, and they feared that they were getting death sentences," she sa...

Endangered teen in Bexar County found, officials say

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 12:33:43 GMT

BEXAR COUNTY, Texas (KXAN) — An endangered teen who was previously reported missing in Bexar County Saturday has been found, according to the Texas Department of Public Safety.Previously, the teen was last seen seen Thursday in San Antonio, officials said.No other details were released Saturday.

North Oaks’ Frankie Capan III in position for first Korn Ferry Tour win heading into final round

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 12:33:43 GMT

North Oaks native Frankie Capan III could take a massive step toward securing his PGA Tour card on Sunday. Capan is just one shot back of France’s Paul Barjon heading into the final round of the Korn Ferry Tour’s Memorial Health Championship in Springfield, Ill.A top-two finish in the tournament would move Capan into the top 20 of the Korn Ferry Tour’s season-long standings. A win would vault Capan, who started this week 43rd in the standings, into the top 10. The top 30 in the points list at season’s end earn their PGA Tour card for 2024.Capan is 19-under-par 194 through the first three rounds in Illinois. He followed up a 9-under round of 62 on Friday with a 64 on Saturday to move within one of tournament leader Paul Barjon, who is at 20 under. Capan will play in the final group Sunday.“I feel good. Yeah, I’m excited,” Capan told reporters. “I was checking the leader board there kind of coming down the stretch, I wasn’t sure wh...

Lynx’s Napheesa Collier named WNBA all-star

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 12:33:43 GMT

Lynx forward Napheesa Collier will make her third WNBA all-star appearance later this month in Las Vegas after the fifth-year forward was voted by the league’s coaches into the reserve pool, the WNBA announced Saturday.The all-star selection is Collier’s third, making her the seventh member in the organization to achieve such a feat.Collier, 26, is averaging career highs in points (22.5), rebounds (7.7) and steals (1.7). She was second in the WNBA in scoring entering Saturday’s late tilt in Phoenix.Those numbers are especially gaudy considering Collier’s relatively slow start to the summer. After a rocky first five outings — all Lynx losses — Collier has averaged 25.3 points and 8.6 rebounds a game over her last 10 contests. Minnesota is 6-4 in that stretch. Collier is playing at an MVP level to boost what looked to be a rebuilding roster into legitimate postseason contention.And she’s doing it while remaining efficient. Collier is shooting 49 percent f...

2023 Scrabble Word Cup playing letters in Albany

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 12:33:43 GMT

ALBANY, N.Y. (NEWS10) -The 2023 Scrabble Word Cup is bringing players together from all over to spell their very best. Put on by LetsPlayScrabble, a group of players who organize tournaments in the U.S. and Canada, with a grand total of $60,000 in prizes.This year, the Mariott Hotel in Albany acts as the starting square on the board for over 250 players from June 30 to July 4. “People play Scrabble all day long in the ballroom and then we do social events like karaoke and trivia. We give people a great weekend," said Director of Word Cup 2023, Josh Greenway. Get the latest, news, weather, sports and community events delivered right to your inbox! Players of all ages play 31 games, stretching their word-spelling muscles. For Player, Mack Meller, he started sweeping the board against family at a young age. Now in almost his 100th tournament, Meller says there is a lot to the game when it comes to spelling the best words.“It’s a very sort of specialized kind of math you use in Scrabb...