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Extremists abduct more than 40 women in latest attack in northeast Nigeria

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:50:36 GMT

MAIDUGURI, Nigeria (AP) — At least 42 women have been abducted by Islamic extremist rebels during an attack in northeast Nigeria’s Borno state, locals told The Associated Press on Wednesday.The rebels attacked the women as they gathered firewood in the Jere district of Borno, which is the epicenter of a 14-year-long insurgency launched by the extremist group known as Boko Haram, according to a member of the Civilian Joint Task Force local security group who identified himself as Abba.Locals also said the victims were from a camp for internally displaced persons in the neighboring Mafa district and had been selling firewood to boost their income as economic hardship in Nigeria under the new president bites harder.Kachalla Maidugu, a government spokesman in the district, confirmed the incident that occurred on Tuesday but was only reported late Wednesday. “We received information yesterday that 46 women were abducted, but only four were allowed to return home while 42 were held back,”...

AP PHOTOS: Hungary hosts track and field world championships, a major sports event

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:50:36 GMT

BUDAPEST, Hungary (AP) — Millions of viewers around the world turned their focus to Hungary this month to watch the 2023 World Athletics Championships as the country’s capital of Budapest stepped on the global stage to deliver a major international sports event. At a cost of nearly $700 million, the city’s sparkling National Athletics Center, on the left bank of the Danube River, is hosting more than 2,000 athletes from over 200 countries.Here are some of the best AP images from the first few days of the nine-day track and field event that wraps up on Sunday.The selection was curated by AP photo editor Anita Baca in Mexico City.Follow AP visual journalism: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/apnews AP Images on Twitter: http://twitter.com/AP_Images AP Images blog: http://apimagesblog.com/ Source

Movie Review: ‘Bottoms’ is a gonzo gay high-school comedy that comes out on top

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:50:36 GMT

The rites and rituals of the raunchy high-school comedy can be as prescribed as a class syllabus. But what makes Emma Seligman’s “Bottoms” such an anarchic thrill is how much it couldn’t care less. Sure, come to “Bottoms” with your expectations of house parties and hijinks. But you’ll be leaving with a field full of bloodied football players.Seligman’s film, which opens in theaters Friday, instead follows its own demented logic in a winding and surreal comedy of adolescent absurdity. The brash PJ ( Rachel Sennott ) and the more hesitant Josie ( Ayo Edebiri ) are longtime best friends who, in reaching senior year at Rock Ridge High, have either finally attained a much sought-after status (“We’re finally hot,” insists PJ) or bottomed out at the low end of the high-school totem pole. “Could the ugly, untalented gays please report to the principal’s office?” the principal (Wayne Pére) announces over the PA.PJ and Josie, accepting that descriptio...

Richie Palacios has 3 hits as the Cardinals beat the Pirates to avoid a sweep

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:50:36 GMT

PITTSBURGH (AP) — Richie Palacios had a career-best three hits and drove in two runs, and the St. Louis Cardinals beat the Pittsburgh Pirates 6-4 on Wednesday to avoid a three-game sweep.Palacios capped a three-run first inning with a two-run double, singled in his next two at-bats and walked in the ninth. The 26-year-old had his first three-hit performance in 61 major league games.“He’s under control,” Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol said. “Takes really nice swings. The ball has been coming off his bat well. Knows the strike zone. Makes a lot of contact. It’s a good combination of skills.”The last-place Cardinals had lost six of seven and were outscored 17-4 in the first two games of the series.Zack Thompson (3-5) gave up two runs on six hits with five strikeouts in five innings. His outing was ended by a 92-minute rain delay with two outs in the top of the sixth.“You go through ups and downs in the season, I think the easiest way to stabilize that is to just be the same guy every ...

QB Stroud to start for Texans against Saints on Sunday

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:50:36 GMT

HOUSTON (AP) — Rookie C.J. Stroud will start Houston’s final preseason game Sunday night at New Orleans.Coach DeMeco Ryans made the announcement Wednesday, but the first-year coach still hasn’t said the second overall pick will be the team’s starting quarterback for the season.Ryans was asked Wednesday if Stroud had earned the right to be the starter.“In everybody’s case, we’ll see who earns what, and you’ll see our starters in Baltimore,” Ryans said of the team’s season opener Sept. 10.Despite this, it seems clear that the former Ohio State standout will replace Davis Mills this season. Stroud has started both of Houston’s first two preseason games and has worked almost exclusively with the first team throughout training camp.Ryans said Wednesday that Stroud and the rest of the players who start will play about two possessions before sitting down against the Saints. Stroud played the entire first half in a 28-3 loss to the Dolphins on Saturday, looking better than he did in h...

Business Highlights: Nvidia posts strong quarterly earnings; the Fed faces tough call on rates

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:50:36 GMT

___Nvidia’s rising star gets even brighter with another stellar quarter propelled by sales of AI chipsSAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Computer chip maker Nvidia has rocketed into the constellation of Big Tech’s brightest stars while riding the artificial intelligence craze that’s fueling red-hot demand for its technology. The latest evidence of Nvidia’s ascendance emerged with Wednesday’s release of the company’s quarterly earnings report. The results covering the May to July period exceeded Nvidia’s projections for astronomical sales growth propelled by the company’s specialized chips needed to power different forms of artificial intelligence such as Open AI’s popular ChatGPT chatbot. Nvidia’s revenue doubled from a year ago to $13.51 billion and the company projected sales are bound even higher. The company’s shares surged 9% in extended trading.___Surprisingly durable US economy poses key question: Are we facing higher-for-longer interest rates?WASHINGTON (AP) — A year ago, Chair Jerome Pow...

Police watching street cameras kill man they saw pull a gun: chief

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:50:36 GMT

DENVER (KDVR) — Aurora Police are investigating a deadly shooting after officers fired at a man they said was holding a firearm.Just before 4 a.m. Wednesday, the Aurora Police Department tweeted about a shooting near the intersection of Colfax and Havana in the Del Mar Parkway neighborhood.According to interim Aurora Police Chief Art Acevedo, officers were monitoring cameras in the area at around 2:30 a.m. The area is known for high activity of drug use and theft. Officers saw two men get into a confrontation and one pulled out a firearm. Denver to clear homeless camp after downtown shooting Two of the officers who were monitoring the street cameras headed to the scene.Acevedo said two officers attempted to speak to the man with the firearm, he was noncompliant with the demands made by the officers, and that is when one officer fired at the suspect. Officers performed life-saving actions, but the man was transported to a hospital where was pronounced dead. No officers were injured...

Hundreds charged with more than $830M in COVID-19 fraud

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:50:36 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — Hundreds of people have been charged with the theft of more than $830 million in COVID-19 emergency aid following a nationwide operation conducted by federal, state and local law enforcement agencies, the U.S. Justice Department announced Wednesday.More than 60 of the defendants have alleged connections to organized crime, the department said, including members of a criminal gang accused of using stolen pandemic aid to pay for a murder. Stolen items offered to CU for display returned to England “This latest action, involving over 300 defendants and over $830 million in alleged COVID-19 fraud, should send a clear message: the COVID-19 public health emergency may have ended, but the Justice Department’s work to identify and prosecute those who stole pandemic relief funds is far from over,” Attorney General Merrick Garland said in a statement.The three-month operation, which ended in July, resulted in more than 300 people being charged, underscoring the pervasivenes...

Rolling Stones appear to tease new album in fake ad in local newspaper

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:50:36 GMT

London (CNN) — If you’re looking for a rock ‘n’ roll end to the summer, then the Rolling Stones may have you covered.The British rock legends appear to have teased a new album through a fake ad for a glass-repair business placed in a local London newspaper.The cryptic ad, which appeared in the east London-based Hackney Gazette last week, looks at first glance like a promotion for the new business, Hackney Diamonds, but on closer examination it contains references to several of the band’s biggest hits.“Our friendly team promises you satisfaction,” it reads. “When you say gimme shelter we’ll fix your shattered windows.”A quick call to the phone number listed in the ad leads to a recorded message.“Welcome to Hackney Diamonds, specialists in glass repairs,” a Cockney-accented male voice says. “Don’t get angry, get it fixed.”Hackney Diamonds supposedly opens for business in early September – something fans are interpreting as a hint at an album release date.The Stones have yet to make a ...

Serena Williams and Alexis Ohanian welcome second child

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:50:36 GMT

(CNN) — The score is two and plenty of love for Serena Williams and Alexis Ohanian.The couple have welcomed their second daughter, according to a post Ohanian’s verified Instagram account.“Welcome, Adira River Ohanian,” he wrote in a post featuring a series of family photos with the newborn. “I’m grateful to report our house is teaming with love: a happy & healthy newborn girl and happy & healthy mama.”The tech entrepreneur went on to write “Feeling grateful.”“@serenawilliams you’ve now given me another incomparable gift — you’re the GMOAT,” he wrote. “Thanks to all the amazing medical staff who took care of my wife & our daughter. I’ll never forget the moment I introduced @olympiaohanian to her baby sister.”Williams publicly shared she was expecting another baby in May at the famed Met Gala in New York City.The tennis legend and Ohanian married in 2017, the same year their daughter Alexis Olympia Ohanian Jr. (who goes by Olympia) was born.