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Russia blames Ukraine for attack on key Crimea military supply bridge that kills 2

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 22:11:20 GMT

Traffic on a key military supply bridge connecting Crimea to Russia’s mainland came to a standstill Monday after one of its sections was blown up, killing two people and wounding their daughter. Russian officials blamed the attack on Ukraine, but Kyiv officials didn’t openly admit it.The strike on the 19-kilometer (12-mile) Kerch Bridge was carried out by two Ukrainian sea drones, Russia’s National Anti-Terrorist Committee said.Ukrainian officials didn’t claim responsibility for the attack, which is the second major strike on the bridge since October, when a truck bomb blew up two of its sections.The bridge is a conspicuous symbol of Moscow’s claims on Crimea and an essential land link to the peninsula, which Russia captured from Ukraine in 2014. The $3.6 billion bridge is the longest in Europe and is crucial for enabling Russia’s military operations in southern Ukraine during the almost 17-month-long war.Russia has expanded its presence in Crimea since its full-scale invasion...

Brussels says glyphosate safe enough for ‘full’ re-approval

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 22:11:20 GMT

The European Commission is readying a proposal for the controversial herbicide glyphosate to receive a full stamp of approval from member states and be re-authorized for use in the EU, according to a leaked draft document.The document, in which the Commission refers to the recent conclusions of the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) on glyphosate’s safety, states that “it may be expected” that pesticide products based on the herbicide will continue to meet the safety requirements laid down in EU legislation.The opinion could pave the way for the chemical to be approved for a standard 15-year period.Developed in the 1970s, glyphosate is the active ingredient in the world’s most widely used pesticides, but critics say it has been linked to cancer and can be harmful to wildlife. It was last approved for use in the EU in 2017 — but only for five years — in a highly controversial process. That five-year license was extended for another 12 month...

Too American? The top US economist under fire for taking an EU job

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 22:11:20 GMT

She’s described as one of the “best economists in the world” for her area with “excellent credentials” as an academic and a record of public service. Yet Fiona Scott Morton’s appointment as the European Commission’s chief competition economist has unleashed a wave of protest, largely from French politicians. The Commission’s decision to pluck Scott Morton from her life as a professor at Yale University has pulled her into a row over her passport and her past: She’s a U.S. citizen and she’s the first non-EU person to take such a senior Commission post. She has also consulted regularly for Big Tech firms — most recently for Microsoft on its Activision deal — as she takes a job advising on investigations and regulation against many U.S. tech giants.Scott Morton is not just any economist; she’s also a former U.S. antitrust regulator and an influential academic who has stoked the U.S.’s renewed interest in tackling the ma...

Newton man facing assault to murder charge in wife’s beating death

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 22:11:20 GMT

A Newton man is facing a charge of assault with intent to murder in connection with the beating death of his wife in their home on Brookline Street on Saturday night, the Middlesex District Attorney’s Office announced.Officers responding to a 911 call reporting an ongoing assault inside the home around 8:20 p.m. found Nancy Hanson, 54, suffering from apparent blunt force injuries, police said. She was taken to Brigham and Women’s Hospital, where she died. A preliminary investigation suggests her husband, Richard Hanson, 64, hit her with one of more objects multiple times. The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner has ruled the death a homicide and the cause was blunt force trauma. Hanson was issued a restraining order in Newton District Court on Thursday, July 13, which Newton police were attempting to service. He is being ordered held without bail pending his arraignment Monday in Newton District Court.In a statement, Newton Mayor Ruthanne Fuller said, “Our communi...

Crews cleaning up after powerful storms flood streets, down trees across New England

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 22:11:20 GMT

(WHDH) — A storm bringing high winds and driving rain prompted officials to announce flood, tornado, and wind advisories across the region on Sunday and now that the clouds have cleared, communities are cleaning up the mess.In North Brookfield a confirmed tornado uprooted trees as it traveled about 2 miles, with peak winds around 8 a.m.In Weymouth, continuous rain left many roadways swamped for drivers, who were forced to look for alternate routes. In Burlington, pooling water on the highway caused slowdowns for some motorists who were traveling in the area.In Nashua, New Hampshire, a lightning strike that lit up the sky was caught on camera.In Fitchburg, severe flooding caused a section of roadway to wash away.Stay with 7NEWS on-air and online for the latest storm coverage.

Woburn school community mourning after 17-year-old student killed in crash involving dirt bike in Wareham

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 22:11:20 GMT

Authorities have identified the man and 17-year-old boy who were killed in a crash involving a dirt bike in Wareham late Saturday night.Officers responding to multiple 911 calls reporting a crash between a dirt bike and a motor vehicle in the area of 121 Marion Road found two people unresponsive in the roadway suffering from apparent serious injuries, according to a statement issued by the Plymouth District Attorney’s Office.The victims, later identified as Robert Stocker, 17, of Woburn, and Brady Petrucci, 20, of Raynham, were taken to Tobey Hospital, where they were pronounced dead.Stalker was a student at Northeast Metro Tech. In a statement, Woburn Metro Tech and Woburn Public Schools said, “We are deeply saddened to hear of the passing of a beloved student at Northeast Metro Tech. This tragedy has affected all of us in Woburn and the surrounding communities. Our hearts are with the victims’ families, and all those impacted by this tragic event.”Grief cou...

Boston eateries receive financial boost from Greg Hill Foundation

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 22:11:20 GMT

A recent delivery of thousands of dollars in grants will help 19 local restaurants boost staffing and equipment and continue their recovery from the coronavirus pandemic, owners tell the Herald.“This is a great opportunity for us,” Reunion BBQ co-owner Joel Morales told the Herald. “My wife and I opened this up around September of 2022, but we did not invest in any marketing or public relations because we didn’t have the money for it.”Reunion BBQ, located in the South End, is one of several restaurants in Boston that received money from the Greg Hill Foundation’s Restaurant Strong Fund.The foundation, established in 2010, has awarded more than $25 million in funds to families and those in need. The foundation’s Restaurant Strong Fund, established in 2020, has done the same to help local businesses across the nation recover from the financial hardships brought on by the coronavirus pandemic.This year, a total of 19 Boston restaurants received a cumulative $200,000 in funds. Morales e...

Marijuana emergency department visits for children, teens have spiked since the pandemic started: CDC

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 22:11:20 GMT

Marijuana emergency department visits for children, teens and young adults have spiked since the start of the pandemic more than three years ago, according to new data from the CDC.This reported jump in cannabis-involved hospital admissions comes after a pre-2019 increase in youth emergency department visits, as pot legalization expanded across the country.Then during the pandemic, the marijuana hospital visits among young people went even higher. The CDC said this week that large spikes in hospital visit rates were reported among children 10 years old and younger, and kids ages 11 to 14.“These increases might stem from multiple factors, such as increased use as a coping mechanism for pandemic-related stressors, use of highly concentrated THC products, increased availability of cannabis in states with legal marketplaces, and increased unintentional ingestions associated with packaging that is appealing or confusing to youths,” the CDC wrote in its report.“To protec...

Russia halts wartime deal allowing Ukraine to ship grain. It’s a blow to global food security

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 22:11:20 GMT

LONDON (AP) — Russia halted an unprecedented wartime deal on Monday that allows grain to flow from Ukraine to countries in Africa, the Middle East and Asia where hunger is a growing threat and high food prices have pushed more people into poverty.Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov announced Russia would suspend the Black Sea Grain Initiative until its demands to get its own agricultural shipments to the world are met — even though the country has been shipping record amounts of wheat and its fertilizers also have been flowing.“When the part of the Black Sea deal related to Russia is implemented, Russia will immediately return to the implementation of the deal,” Peskov said. Russia has complained that restrictions on shipping and insurance have hampered its exports of food and fertilizer — also critical to the global food chain.It’s the end of a breakthrough accord that the United Nations and Turkey brokered last summer to allow food to leave the Black Sea region after Russia invaded it...

Israel’s governing coalition presses ahead with plan to overhaul courts ahead of expected protests

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 22:11:20 GMT

TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — Israel’s governing coalition pushed ahead on Monday with its contentious plan to overhaul the country’s judiciary, despite growing opposition from within the country’s military and a wave of mass protests expected this week.A parliamentary committee was preparing a bill that would limit judicial oversight on some government decisions, legislation that has sparked intensifying criticism from military reservists in elite units, including the air force and cyberwarfare.Many have warned they will not show up for duty if the overhaul moves ahead. Reservists, who make up the backbone of the country’s mostly compulsory military, played a key role in prompting Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to pause the overhaul plan earlier this year. In response to the legislation, which is expected to go before a final parliamentary vote early next week, a large protest movement is expected to stage a “day of disruption” on Tuesday. These days of mass pr...