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Lo que sabemos sobre el tiroteo en una universidad de Praga, República Checa, que dejó al menos 14 muertos y 25 heridos

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 12:21:55 GMT

(CNN) — Al menos 14 personas murieron y otras 25 resultaron heridas en un ataque con armas de fuego en Praga, según informaron los servicios de emergencia de la capital checa. Se trata del tiroteo masivo más mortífero que la República Checa haya visto en décadas.Las autoridades creen que el atacante, un hombre de 24 años, se suicidó, dijo el jueves por la noche el jefe de la policía checa, Martin Vondrášek, pero añadió que aún no se había confirmado. El atacante, que según la policía era un estudiante de la Facultad de Artes de la Universidad Charles, no ha sido identificado formalmente debido a la gravedad de sus heridas, dijo el jefe. Las autoridades no lo han nombrado.Las autoridades todavía están investigando el motivo del ataque, que tuvo lugar en el edificio de la Facultad de Artes de la Universidad Carolina, en el centro de la capital. La zona es popular entre los turistas y está cerca de las principales atracciones, justo al otro lado del río Moldava desde el Castillo ...

Howie Carr: Bad echo in the Harvard president’s office

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 12:21:55 GMT

I have so many reactions to the current plight of anti-Semitic uber-plagiarist Harvard president Claudine Gay.My heart feels like an alligator.It would take a heart of stone not to laugh.After all, it is not enough to succeed, others must fail.Of course those above three comments aren’t mine. In fact, they are quotes, or paraphrases, from, respectively, Hunter S. Thompson, Oscar Wilde and Gore Vidal.You see, Dr. Gay, is it really that hard to credit people who do the grunt work?But for her, it apparently is. And now she is hoist with her own petard (Shakespeare), twisting slowly, slowly in the wind (John Ehrlichman).Maybe she’ll still be able to ride this out. Probably not, but you’ve heard of the old phrase, “Too Big to Fail.”Claudine Gay may be Too Black to Fail.To quote Gore Vidal again, “No talent is not enough.” For Claudine Gay, though, it may indeed be more than enough.At first Harvard said Gay’s research problems only amounted to a few cases of “inadequate citation.”Now it’s...

DeSantis spread false information while pushing trans health care ban and restrictions, a judge says

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 12:21:55 GMT

By BRENDAN FARRINGTON (Associated Press)TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — A federal judge hearing a challenge to a transgender health care ban for minors and restrictions for adults noted Thursday that Republican Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis repeatedly spread false information about doctors mutilating children’s genitals even though there’s been no such documented cases.The law was sold as defending children from mutilation when it is actually about preventing trans children from getting health care, Judge Robert Hinkle said to Mohammad Jazil, a lawyer for the state.“When I’m analyzing the governor’s motivation, what should I make of these statements?” Hinkle asked. “This seems to be more than just hyperbole.”Hinkle said he will rule sometime in the new year on whether the Legislature, the Department of Health and presidential candidate DeSantis deliberately targeted transgender people through the new law. He raised some skepticism about the...

A storm in Europe disrupts German trains. A woman was killed by a falling Christmas tree in Belgium

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 12:21:55 GMT

BERLIN (AP) — Pre-Christmas rail travelers in parts of Germany faced disruption on Friday as a storm swept across northern Europe, bringing down trees and prompting warnings of flooding on the North Sea coast. In neighboring Belgium, a woman was killed by a falling Christmas tree.National railway operator Deutsche Bahn said there were cancellations on routes from Hamburg and Hannover to Frankfurt and Munich, while long-distance services from Hamburg northward to Kiel and Flensburg weren’t running, among other disruptions.The company said that falling trees damaged overhead electric wires or blocked tracks largely in northern Germany, but also in the central state of Hesse.There were some delays late Thursday evening at Frankfurt Airport, Germany’s busiest, though there were no cancellations as a result of the storm, and the airport operator said that it was business as usual on Friday morning, German news agency dpa reported.In Hamburg, the Elbe River flooded streets aro...

In the news today: Temporary visas offered to people in Gaza with Canadian relatives

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 12:21:55 GMT

Here is a roundup of stories from The Canadian Press designed to bring you up to speed on what you need to know today…People in Gaza with Canadian relatives offered visas, but no guarantee of escapeCanadians desperate to bring extended family members in the Gaza Strip to safety will soon be able to apply for temporary visas for their loved ones, but the government can’t guarantee they’ll be able to escape.Immigration Minister Marc Miller announced the new temporary immigration program Thursday for people in the Gaza Strip who have Canadian relatives, but he underscored the challenges of getting out of the besieged Palestinian territory.The Rafah border crossing is tightly controlled by Israel and Egypt as part of negotiations mediated by Qatar, and Canada has no say about who crosses the border on a given day. Instead, Canada has provided a list of names for the consideration of foreign authorities.Canada at growing odds with Global South: expertsForeign Affairs Mi...

High expectations, tight budget pose a challenge for Manitoba’s new premier

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 12:21:55 GMT

WINNIPEG — By all accounts, Manitoba Premier Wab Kinew is still in a honeymoon phase, almost three months after leading his New Democrats to an election win that ousted the former Progressive Conservative government.Recent opinion polls suggest he is riding high, including an Angus-Reid survey earlier this month that suggested his approval rating is tops among Canada’s premiers.But political analysts say the real test lies ahead, as Kinew tries to fulfil promises to boost health care, improve education and give raises to public-sector workers while dealing with the province’s chronic deficits.“I think (the New Democrats) have done a number of things to allow them to say they’re off to a good fast start, but many of those things have been of a symbolic nature,” said Paul Thomas, professor emeritus of political studies at the University of Manitoba.“I think the real test of the new government will come in the new year when the budget is delivered.&#...

Canada’s aid cut, geopolitical stances challenge ‘pragmatic’ pivot to Global South

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 12:21:55 GMT

OTTAWA — Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly said this fall that Canada needs to better reflect the needs of developing countries and have closer ties with states where the majority of the world’s population lives.But analysts say it will be hard for Canada to rise to that challenge as the Liberals cut back on aid and its foreign service, combined with stances on geopolitics that grate people in what is often called the Global South.“Canada still has not left that rather comfortable framework that we had in the Cold War,” said Pablo Heidrich, a Carleton University professor whose research focuses on the Global South.“Canada is seen as problematic partner, a country that you don’t know what it is going to come up with next.”In a major speech last October, Joly said an increasingly connected, volatile world requires Canada to work with more than just democracies.“The current world order is also being questioned by people and nations, especia...

The high costs of wildfires in 2023: For homeowners the struggles carry on for months

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 12:21:55 GMT

HALIFAX — Seven months after a wildfire left a charred, 1,000-hectare scar on the western suburbs of Halifax, less visible damage persists in the lives of those who lost their homes to the flames.Lindsay Law said the financial and emotional costs continue in ways she and her husband, Jacob Haybecker, never imagined before their home was destroyed on the evening of May 28, as thousands of people were evacuated from the area. The 34-year-old nurse said insurance is paying for the cost of building a new home, but there are gaps in coverage the average Canadian homeowner might not be aware they could face.“It felt like things were going fine and then we got to the point when we realized there was oil damage in the soil,” she recalled in a recent interview.“We had to pay $10,000 out of our pocket, and we were only given one day to pay this. We were told the amount could triple if we waited a few days because there was a rainstorm coming,” she said about the concer...

Is Canada’s fleet of water bombers fit for climate-change fuelled wildfires?

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 12:21:55 GMT

TORONTO — They’re an easily recognizable part of Canada’s fight against wildfires, playing a key supporting role in the annual battle against the flames.  Water bombers can look as though they might land in a burning forest, their wings almost skimming the smoky canopy before dumping down thousands of litres of water and pulling back into the sky. The firefighting aircraft are important in a country where wildfires can often be spread out over massive, remote stretches of land, offering a way to hold off fires until ground crews arrive. But as Canada’s water bombers age – and wildfire seasons are expected to intensify – some wildland firefighters and emergency preparedness experts say the country needs to prop up its fleet of firefighting aircraft, even though several provinces are playing down concerns about capacity. “We’re really starting to see the effects of the aging fleet,” said Eric Davidson, president of the Ontario Professional Associati...

Japan’s Cabinet OKs record $56 billion defense budget for 2024 to accelerate strike capability

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 12:21:55 GMT

TOKYO (AP) — Japan’s defense spending will surge more than 16% next year under a record military budget approved Friday by the Cabinet that will accelerate deployment of long-range cruise missiles that can hit targets in China or North Korea.It also will further fortify the military with F-35 stealth combat jets and other American weapons as Japanese troops increasingly work with allies and take on more offensive roles.The 7.95 trillion-yen ($56 billion) budget plan for the 2024 fiscal year beginning March marks the second year of a five-year military buildup program under a new security strategy Prime Minister Fumio Kishida’s government adopted a year ago. The reinforcement of strike capability under the strategy is a major break from Japan’s postwar principle of limiting use of force to self-defense. Japan plans to spend 43 trillion yen ($300 billion) through 2027 to bolster military power and nearly double its annual spending to around 10 trillion yen ($68 billion), making Japan ...