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(The Center Square) – Homeowners in the market for washers and dryers may have better-performing options to choose from in the near future due to a bill limiting the extent of energy efficiency mandates on laundry appliances passing the U.S. House. The Republican-led House Resolution 1612 , or Liberty in Laundry Act, would prohibit the Secretary of Energy from enforcing energy conservation standards for clothes washers or dryers that “are not cost-effective or technologically feasible.” Rep. Andy Ogles, R-Tenn., who introduced the legislation, said the move is a response to the “slew of woke, ‘environmental’ nonsense rulemaking attempts” by the Biden administration and U.S. Department of Energy. “I have spent much of my time in Congress fighting back the federal government’s vast overreach into the lives of hardworking Americans,” Ogles announced after the bill’s passage Tuesday. “Americans should be able to do their laundry in peace without the input of Big Brother.” Earlier this year, the DOE finalized new updated standards for residential clothes washers and dryers which aim to cut costs and pollution. It estimates the regulations will reduce nearly 71 million metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions–equivalent to the combined annual emissions of nearly 9 million homes–and up to $39 billion on Americans’ energy and water bills over the next 30 years. House Democrats opposed the legislation's passage, saying "absolutely no one" stands to benefit from the law and accused Republicans of trying to curry favor with special interest groups. "H.R. 7673 guts popular energy efficiency standards for laundry machines – standards that save Americans money on their utility bills and reduce dangerous greenhouse gas pollution at the same time," said Energy and Commerce Committee Ranking Member Frank Pallone, Jr., D-N.J. "These efficiency standards create certainty for manufacturers and they protect consumers from rising costs. And, in the case of these laundry machine standards, they also reduce water use – a benefit that could greatly aid drought-prone regions around the nation." But the less electricity and water laundry appliances use, the less effectively they tend to perform, according to an Oct. 2024 report by the Institute for Energy Research. “Historically, appliances meeting Energy Department standards have often underperformed and have higher costs,” the report stated. “The Biden-Harris administration is imposing a series of regulations that are raising appliance prices and compromising quality for homeowners.” Unless the bill is signed into law, laundry appliance makers have until March 2028 to comply with the new rules.
TORONTO — Ontario municipal councillors could be removed from office and disqualified from running again under new provincial legislation introduced Thursday that would increase penalties for violating a municipal code of conduct. Municipalities have for years been calling for updated codes of conduct to address workplace harassment, as well as stricter penalties for those who violate the rules — including removal from office — but the main advocacy group pushing for changes says the new bill makes it too difficult to get rid of those councillors. Municipal Affairs Minister Paul Calandra's bill would allow for the creation of a standard code of conduct for all municipalities, with penalties of removing and disqualifying a member from office if they are in serious violation of the code. But removal and disqualification could only happen if the municipal integrity commissioner recommends it, if Ontario's integrity commissioner agrees and if councillors except for the member in question unanimously agree to it in a vote. Emily McIntosh, with Women of Ontario Say No, which has been pushing for more tools to hold politicians accountable for workplace harassment, said the requirement of a unanimous vote should not be in the legislation. "If you require unanimous support at the council level, it means that one person who has a personal relationship with another person can undermine the recommendation of the provincial integrity commissioner for removal," she said in a video statement. "It also is extremely inefficient from a taxpayer perspective, which means we're investing as taxpayers into this great process to make things consistent, only to see it potentially risk being non-actionable because one person doesn't like the outcome." Calandra said all of the steps in the process are deliberately difficult to overcome. "It is meant to be a very high bar," he said at a press conference. "Ultimately, the people will decide in an election. I wanted to have a mechanism (for removal), though. I thought it was very important. "I think we've hit a good balance that will allow councils to address the most egregious of challenges in their community, while respecting the voters of each community." Municipal integrity commissioners and the provincial integrity commissioner would only be able to recommend removal from office if the councillor has contravened the code of conduct, the conduct is serious and has resulted in harm to a person's health, safety or well-being, and existing penalties aren't sufficient. The integrity commissioner could also consider whether the conduct "negatively impacts public confidence in the ability of the member to discharge their duties," the government said. The Ontario's Big City Mayors group said it is pleased with the legislation. "Municipalities and municipal integrity commissioners currently lack the tools to enforce codes of conduct and there have unfortunately been numerous examples of repeated contraventions of codes of conduct, bullying and harassment across the municipal sector," the group wrote in a statement. "Municipal staff and elected members of council deserve a safe and respectful workplace free from harassment and bullying." Stephen Blais, who represents the riding of Orleans for the Liberals, had introduced a private member's bill on the topic, prompted by complaints of harassment related to an Ottawa councillor. He said the unanimous vote is too high of a bar, and the government's legislation is "too little, too late." He added he is not convinced it will ever pass, with the possibility Premier Doug Ford could call an early election this spring. "I don't think it will be debated and certainly I don't think passed into law, given the timing of the election," Blais said. "Moreover, the process that they’ve established is very cumbersome and my efforts and the efforts from stakeholders have been to try to take politics out of this process and it seems to me the government is injecting politics straight into it." Ontario's legislature rose Thursday for its winter break, which the government has extended. The legislature had been set to return Feb. 18 but it will now not be back until March 3. The bill is skipping second reading and going straight to the committee stage, so it is possible for committee hearings to take place on the bill while the legislature is not sitting. Calandra also introduced a Peel Transition Implementation Act, to transfer some services currently handled by Peel Region to its three municipalities of Mississauga, Brampton and Caledon. That comes after Ontario reversed course on a plan to dissolve the regional government, instead promising to find efficiencies in its management. This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 12, 2024. Allison Jones, The Canadian Press
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Kendrick Lamar gave music listeners an early holiday present Friday with the surprise drop of a new album. The Grammy winner's 12-track “GNX” is his first release since 2022's “Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers” and his sixth studio album overall. It also comes just months after his rap battle with Drake. Lamar first teased the album with a cover art and video snippet of “GNX,” which features multi-instrumentalist Jack Antonoff as a co-producer on every track except for “Peekaboo.” Other notable producers include Sounwave and DJ Mustard , who both contributed production on the hit “Not Like Us,” the ubiquitous diss track emanating from the Drake feud. Lamar's former Top Dawg Entertainment labelmate SZA appears on a couple songs including “Gloria” and “Luther,” which also features sampled vocals from Luther Vandross and Cheryl Lynn through “If This World Were Mine." On the opening track “Wacced Out Murals,” Lamar raps about cruising in his Buick GNX (Grand National Experimental) car with listening to Anita Baker. He brings up Snoop Dogg posting Drake's AI-assisted “Taylor Made Freestyle” diss track on social media and Nas congratulating Lamar for being selected to headline February's Apple Music Super Bowl Halftime Show in New Orleans. Lamar also shows admiration for Lil Wayne, who expressed his hurt feelings after being passed over as the headliner in his hometown. Lamar, 37, has experienced massive success since his debut album “good kid, m.A.A.d city” in 2012. Since then, he’s accumulated 17 Grammy wins and became the first non-classical, non-jazz musician to win a Pulitzer Prize for his 2017 album “DAMN.” The surprise release caps a big year for Lamar, who was featured on the song “Like That” with Future and Metro Boomin — a track that spent three weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 this year. Lamar is up for seven Grammys, fueled by “Not Like Us,” which earned nods for record and song of the year, rap song, music video as well as best rap performance. He has two simultaneous entries in the latter category, a career first: “Like That” is up for best rap performance and best rap song, too. 1. “Wacced Out Murals” 2. “Squabble Up” 3. “Luther” (feat. SZA) 4. “Man at the Garden” 5. “Hey Now” 6. “Reincarnated” 7. “TV Off” 8. “Dodger Blue” 9. “Peekaboo” 10. “Heart Pt. 6” 11. “GNX” 12. “Gloria” (feat. SZA)Each year, Penn State has a handful of first- or second-year wrestlers in the lineup, and each year the questions are posed about their progress. This year, Luke Lilledahl is a freshman at 125, Braeden Davis is a sophomore at 133, Tyler Kasak is a sophomore at 157 and Josh Barr is a redshirt frosh at 197. Each of those four brought a lot of experience and success to Penn State from their scholastic days but college remains a different animal in terms of the transition process. A question about when that turning point shows itself in younger wrestlers — specifically Lilledahl, Davis and Barr — intrigued assistant head coach Cody Sanderson on Tuesday outside the Lorenzo Wrestling Complex mats. “Sometimes we see it right away with guys, sometimes it takes a few more matches,” he said. “My college coaches talked about guys having 20 bouts under their belt, not the redshirt level but the actual competition level. I think that holds for a lot of guys, but now, just as good as these kids are in their development, we’re seeing that happen a little bit quicker. “So really, what we’re looking for is individual improvements. Each guy is a little bit different, and a lot of it is following a game plan, finishing in a tough situation that they didn’t finish before, or really wrestling through a position that they didn’t know they weren’t wrestling through before.” Sanderson said some of the most talented wrestlers can think they wrestled through positions because they were superior athletically and technically than guys in high school. “Now they go up against somebody that’s more equal ... are they going to wrestle through those positions?” he said. “And that’s a big marker that we see. It’s pretty subtle, and I don’t know how many people would notice it on the outside but one thing we look for are they transitioning and going through those positions that they maybe got stuck in before.” Lilledahl had his first strong test against Lehigh’s Sheldon Seymour and scored a takedown with 14 seconds left to win 4-1 on Sunday in Allentown. “I was happy with Luke, I think he wanted to put more points on the board, but that was his first college dual meet on a big stage against a tough competitor, a guy that wrestled hard,” Sanderson said. “To be close in that third period and to defend with a baseline defense and turn around and come out on top, there’s just a lot of maturity that you see there from him; that sort of thing is really hard to coach. “He just knows where he is in the match. He didn’t panic at all. He just stayed focused, stayed with his snaps, stayed with his attacks. Now going forward, and we know he’s going to respond well in a big match. Now we just need to help him get a little bit more offense in some of those positions against maybe a little bit stronger, bigger guys.” Davis, who as a freshman won the 125-pound Big Ten title and earned the No. 1 seed at the NCAAs but did not place, faced Lehigh’s top-ranked Ryan Crookham at 133 and was defeated 4-2. Davis forced Crookham into a couple of stalling points but was unable to get to Crookham’s legs from neutral in the closing 30 to 40 seconds. “These guys have been competing at a high level for a long time, and part of that is taking some bumps and bruises along the way,” Sanderson said. “His (Davis) attitude was good afterward. He was he was upset. I mean, he’s as competitive as can be, but he knows he needs to work on some positions, and he feels like he wants to get another opportunity to get that guy. So that’s the sort of thing we want to hear from guys. So, no concerns there from us.” Barr at 197 was involved in a close bout with Penn State transfer and two-time All-America and No. 6-ranked Michael Beard ... until he wasn’t. A pair of low single-leg takedowns on which he switched to a double gave Beard an 8-2 lead and he made it 11-3 with a hip-high double late in the third. It was an impressive showing, to say the least, for Barr, who jumped to No. 6 from No. 21 in this week’s individual FloWrestling rankings. “We felt like with the right game plan, that Josh would be able to find a way to get on top, and he did exactly what the coaches talked with him about doing, and he found a way to win,” Sanderson said. “We’re just happy for him. I think if you saw in that match, you saw him really get to his offense. He didn’t get stuck underneath. He didn’t have his head down. Those are the things we’re looking for ... for him to get to that leg and get to the finishes. Earlier this year, he got stuck underneath guys a couple times, but you can see the improvement. We first really saw this past spring when he made that U-20 team, and since then, he just got better and better.” Overall, Sanderson said, it’s rewarding when things go to plan for the individual wrestlers. “It is really satisfying in an individual situation when you see an athlete follow the game plan, because-wrestling is a little bit tricky to game plan. You have this idea of what the match should be like, and then they make contact, and things just change right away,” Sanderson explained. “But to see somebody get in a tough match, in a tough environment with that kind of crowd to stick with the game plan, it’s good because you really see his maturity there. Because those sorts of situations, you can see guys, they’ll start to not regress, but they’ll start going to things they’re more comfortable with.”An Israeli airstrike flattened a multistory building in central Gaza, killing at least 25 people and wounding dozens more, according to Palestinian medical officials, after strikes Thursday across the Gaza Strip killed at least 28 others. The latest deadly strike hit the urban Nuseirat refugee camp just hours after U.S. President Joe Biden’s national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, told reporters in Jerusalem that the recent ceasefire in Lebanon has helped clear the way for a potential deal to end the war in Gaza between Israel and Hamas. The Israeli military did not immediately comment on the deadly strike in Nuseirat. Israel says it is trying to eliminate Hamas, which led the attack on southern Israel in October 2023 that sparked the war in Gaza . The Israeli military says Hamas militants hide among Gaza’s civilian population. The fighting has plunged Gaza into a severe humanitarian crisis, with experts warning of famine in some of the hardest-hit parts of the territory. Israel’s offensive has killed over 44,800 Palestinians in Gaza, more than half of them women and children, according to the Gaza Health Ministry, which does not say how many were combatants. The Israeli military says it has killed over 17,000 militants, without providing evidence. The Oct. 7, 2023 attack by Hamas killed some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and around 250 others were taken hostage. Some 100 hostages are still inside Gaza, at least a third of whom are believed to be dead. Here's the latest: DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip — An Israeli airstrike hit the central Gaza Strip on Thursday, killing at least 25 Palestinians and wounding dozens more, Palestinian medics said, just hours after President Joe Biden’s national security adviser raised hopes about a ceasefire deal to end the war in Gaza. Photos from the scene of the blast that circulated on social media showed a completely collapsed building with people walking through its mangled and charred remains, smoke rising from piles of belongings strewn over the rubble. Officials at two hospitals in the Gaza Strip, al-Awda Hospital in the north and al-Aqsa Hospital in central Gaza, reported they received a combined total of 25 bodies from an Israeli strike on a multistory residential building in the urban Nuseirat refugee camp. Palestinian medics also reported that over 40 people, most of them children, were receiving treatment at the two hospitals. The al-Aqsa Hospital said that the Israeli attack also damaged several nearby houses in Nuseirat. There was no immediate comment from the Israeli military on the deadly strike. Israel is trying to eliminate Hamas, which led the attack on southern Israel in October 2023 that sparked the war in Gaza . The Israeli military says Hamas militants hide among Gaza’s civilian population. Israel’s war against Hamas has killed over 44,800 Palestinians in Gaza, more than half of them women and children, according to the Gaza Health Ministry, which does not say how many were combatants. The Israeli military says it has killed over 17,000 militants, without providing evidence. The fighting has plunged Gaza into a severe humanitarian crisis, with experts warning of famine. Israel says it allows enough aid to enter and blames U.N. agencies for not distributing it. The U.N. says Israeli restrictions, and the breakdown of law and order after Israel repeatedly targeted the Hamas-run police force, make it extremely difficult to operate in the territory. UNITED NATIONS – The U.N. food agency is trying to deal with massive needs in Syria not only from escalating war-related food insecurity and an upsurge in displaced people fleeing Lebanon but also the dramatically new environment following the ouster of Bashar Assad, a senior U.N. official says. “It’s a triple crisis and the needs are going to be massive,” said Carl Skau, deputy executive director of the World Food Program, in an interview with The Associated Press late Wednesday. The WFP estimated that 3 million people in Syria were “acutely food insecure” and very hungry. However, that estimate was made before the Israel-Hezbollah war in Lebanon pushed many Syrian refugees back to their home country, plus the instability caused by the overthrow of Assad. Due to funding cuts, the WFP had been targeting only 2 million of those people, he said. Because WFP has been working in Syria during the 13-year civil war, he said, it has pre-positioned food in the country. It has 500 staff in seven offices nationwide and has operated across conflict lines, across borders, and with all different parties, he said. Skau said Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, the main rebel group now in control of Syria, has promised to provide security for WFP warehouses. Humanitarian aid supplies had been looted at U.N. warehouses in the disorder after Assad fell. “We’re not really up and running in Damascus because of the continued kind of uncertainty there,” he said. WFP initially thought of relocating non-essential staff but the situation in Aleppo, Syria’s largest city, has been “quite calm and orderly," he said. In the short term, Skau said, “what we’re seeing is that markets are disrupted, the value of the currency dropped dramatically, food prices are going up, transport lines don’t work,” and it’s unclear who will stamp required papers for imports and exports. This means that a bigger humanitarian response is needed initially, he said, but in the next phase, the U,N. will be looking at contributing to Syria’s recovery, and ultimately the country will need reconstruction. Skau said he expects a new funding appeal for Syria and urged donors to be generous. JERUSALEM — President Joe Biden’s national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, told reporters in Jerusalem on Thursday that Israel’s ceasefire in Lebanon has helped clear the way for another deal to end the war in Gaza. He plans to travel next to Qatar and Egypt — key mediators in the ceasefire talks — as the Biden administration makes a final push on negotiations before Donald Trump is inaugurated. Sullivan said “Hamas’ posture at the negotiating table did adapt” after Israel decimated the leadership of its ally Hezbollah in Lebanon and reached a ceasefire there. “We believe it puts us in a position to close this negotiation,” he said. Sullivan dismissed speculation that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was waiting for Trump to take office to finalize a deal. He the U.S. believes there are three American hostages still alive in Gaza, but it’s hard to know for sure. He also said “the balance of power in the Middle East has changed significantly” since Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack on Israel, especially with the overthrow of former Syrian President Bashar Assad, a key ally of Hezbollah and Iran. “We are now faced with a dramatically reshaped Middle East in which Israel is stronger, Iran is weaker, its proxies decimated, and a ceasefire that is new and will be lasting in Lebanon that ensures Israel’s security over the long term,” he said. KHIAM, Lebanon — An Israeli strike killed at least one person Thursday in the Lebanese border town of Khiam, the Health Ministry said, less than a day after Israeli troops handed the hilltop village back to the Lebanese army in coordination with U.N. peacekeepers, Khiam is the first Lebanese town Israel has pull out of since a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah militants began two weeks ago, and marks an important test of the fragile truce . Lebanon's Health Ministry and state news agency did not provide details on who was killed, and did not report airstrikes elsewhere on Thursday. The Israeli military said an airstrike targeted Hezbollah fighters in southern Lebanon, without saying if the strike was in Khiam. Lebanese troops deployed in the northern section of the town on Thursday morning and were coordinating with U.N. peacekeepers to finalize Israel’s withdrawal before fully entering into other neighborhoods. An Associated Press reporter who visited Khiam on Thursday observed widespread destruction, with most houses reduced to rubble. Entire neighborhoods were flattened, with collapsed walls and debris scattered across the streets. Lebanon’s caretaker prime minister, Najib Mikati, sharply criticized Israel for striking the town less than 24 hours after the Lebanese army returned, saying it was “a violation of the pledges made by the parties that sponsored the ceasefire agreement, who must act to curb Israeli aggression.” The truce was brokered by the U.S. and France. Israel has previously said the ceasefire deal allows it to use military force against perceived violations. Near-daily attacks by Israel during the ceasefire, mostly in southern Lebanon, have killed at least 29 people and wounded 27 others. Khiam, which sits on a ridge less than 3 miles (5 kilometers) from the border with Israel, saw some of the most intense fighting during the war. The Lebanese army was clearing debris and reopening roads in the northern section of the town. Civilian access to other areas remained challenging as the army clears roads and works alongside the U.N. peacekeepers to ensure the area is free of unexploded ordnance. AQABA, Jordan -- U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is urging the many players in Syria to avoid taking any steps that could lead to further violence. Blinken spoke to reporters in Jordan on Thursday shortly after meeting King Abdullah II as he opened a trip in the region to discuss Syria's future after former President Bashar Assad's ouster. Blinken will next visit Turkey, a NATO ally and a main backer of Syrian rebel groups. Blinken called this “a time of both real promise but also peril for Syria and for its neighbors.” He said he was focused on coordinating efforts in the region “to support the Syrian people as they transition away from Assad’s brutal dictatorship” and establish a government that isn’t dominated by one religion or ethnic group or outside power. Blinken was asked about Israel’s incursion into a buffer zone that had been demilitarized for the past half century. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says the move is temporary and defensive, but also indicated Israel will remain in the area for a long time. Blinken declined to say whether the U.S. supports the move, but said the U.S. would be speaking to Israel and other partners in the region. “I think, across the board, when it comes to any actors who have real interests in Syria, it’s also really important at this time that, we all try to make sure that we’re not sparking any additional conflicts,” he said. ANKARA, Turkey — Turkey’s intelligence chief, Ibrahim Kalin, arrived in Damascus on Thursday, according to Turkish media reports. Kalin was seen arriving at the Umayyad Mosque to pray, surrounded by a large crowd, according to video shown on Turkish television. The visit is highly symbolic. Turkish officials, who supported the opposition against Syria’s government, had predicted at the start of the civil war in 2011 that President Bashar Assad’s government would fall, allowing them to pray at the Umayyad Mosque. JERUSALEM — Paraguay reopened its embassy in Jerusalem Thursday, becoming one of a small handful of nations to recognize the city as Israel’s capital and marking a diplomatic victory for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Israel’s international isolation has increased as the war in Gaza drags on, and Paraguay was the first country to move its embassy to Jerusalem since the Oct. 7, 2023 Hamas attack that kickstarted the war. The United States, Honduras, Guatemala, Kosovo, and Papua New Guinea are among the few countries with Jerusalem embassies. Israel annexed east Jerusalem in 1967 but it wasn’t recognized by the international community, and most countries run their embassies out of Tel Aviv. Spirits were high at the ceremony marking the embassy’s inauguration Thursday, with Netanyahu and Israel’s Foreign Minister Gideon Saar lavishing praise on Paraguayan President Santiago Pena. “My good friend Santiago,” said Netanyahu, addressing Pena. “We’re a small nation. You’re a small nation. We suffered horrible things but we overcame the odds of history...we can win and we are winning.” Paraguay had an embassy in Jerusalem in 2018, under Former President Horacio Cartes. That embassy was moved back to Tel Aviv by Cartes’ successor, Mario Abdo Benitez, prompting Israel to close its embassy in Asuncion. Saar said Israel and Paraguay shared a “friendship based not only on interests but also values and principles.” He and the Paraguayan foreign minister, Rubén Ramírez Lezcano, signed a series of bilateral agreements and Saar said he would soon visit Asunción with a delegation from the Israeli private sector. “Israel is going to win and the countries we are standing next to Israel, we are going to win," Pena said. AQABA, Jordan — U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is renewing calls for Syria’s new leadership to respect women and minority rights, prevent extremists from gaining new footholds in the country and keeping suspected chemical weapons stocks secure as he makes his first visit to the Mideast since the weekend ouster of Syrian President Bashar Assad . Making his 12th trip to the Middle East since the Israel-Hamas war erupted lasted year but amid fresh concerns about security following the upheaval in Syria, Blinken emphasized Thursday to Jordan’s King Abdullah II U.S. “support for an inclusive transition that can lead to an accountable and representative Syrian government chosen by the Syrian people,” the State Department said. Blinken also repeated the importance the outgoing Biden administration puts on respect for human rights and international law, the protection of civilians and stopping terrorist groups from reconstituting. Blinken met with the monarch and Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi in Aqaba before traveling to Turkey for talks with Turkish officials on the situation in Syria and the urgency of securing a long-elusive deal to release hostages and end the fighting in Gaza that has devastated the Palestinian territory since October 2023. Abdullah told Blinken that “the first step to reach comprehensive regional calm is to end the Israeli war on Gaza." GENEVA — The U.N. envoy for Syria is calling on authorities to save evidence from detention centers that were a hub of “unimaginable barbarity” that Syrians have faced for many years and cooperate with international investigators looking into such crimes. Geir Pederson referred to new images from the notorious Saydnaya military prison north of the capital, Damascus, after President Bashar Assad fled Syria as armed groups stormed in to overthrow his government over the weekend. “The images from Saydnaya and other detention facilities starkly underscore the unimaginable barbarity Syrians have endured and reported for years,” Pedersen said in a statement. Documentation and testimonies “only scratch the surface of the carceral system’s horrors,” he added. Pedersen urged authorities to cooperate with U.N. bodies like an independent Commission of Inquiry on Syria, which was created in 2011, and an independent group known as the IIIM that was set up five years later to also compile evidence of crimes. ROME — Leaders of the Group of 7 industrialized nations offered their full support for an inclusive political transition in Syria and invited all parties to preserve the country’s territorial integrity. In a message released by Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni’s office, the leaders said they were ready to support a transition that “leads to a credible government, inclusive and not sectarian, that guarantees respect for the state of law, universal human rights, including rights for women, (and) the protection of all Syrians, including religious and ethnic minorities.” The leaders also underlined the importance that ousted President Bashar Assad’s government is held responsible for crimes, citing “decades of atrocities.” They said they would also cooperate with groups working to prohibit chemical weapons “to secure, declare and destroy” remaining chemical arms in Syria. Italy currently holds the rotating presidency of the G-7, which also includes Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Japan and the United States. JERUSALEM — The Israeli military says it struck Hamas militants in two locations in the southern Gaza Strip who planned to hijack aid convoys. Palestinian Health officials had earlier said that the two strikes killed 15 men who were part of local committees established to secure aid deliveries. The committees have been organized in cooperation with the Hamas-run Interior Ministry in Gaza. It was not possible to independently confirm either account of the strikes, which occurred overnight into Thursday. Israel has long accused Hamas of hijacking humanitarian aid deliveries, while U.N. officials have said there is no systemic diversion of aid . U.N. agencies and aid groups say deliveries are held up by Israeli restrictions on the entry of aid and movement within Gaza, as well as the breakdown of law and order more than 14 months into the war between Israel and Hamas. Israel has repeatedly targeted the Hamas-run police force, which maintained internal security before the war. The United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees, the main aid provider in Gaza, said a U.N. convoy of 70 trucks carrying humanitarian aid in southern Gaza “was involved in a serious incident,” resulting in just one of the trucks reaching its destination. It did not provide further details on the incident but said the same route had been used successfully two days earlier. Israel’s offensive, launched after Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attack, has caused vast destruction and displaced around 90% of Gaza’s population of 2.3 million, leaving the territory heavily reliant on international food aid. DAMASCUS, Syria — An American who turned up in Syria on Thursday says he was detained after crossing into the country by foot on a Christian pilgrimage seven months ago. Travis Timmerman appears to have been among thousands of people released from the country’s notorious prisons after rebels reached Damascus over the weekend, overthrowing President Bashar Assad and ending his family’s 54-year rule. As video emerged online of Timmerman on Thursday, he was initially mistaken by some for Austin Tice, an American journalist who went missing in Syria 12 years ago. In the video, Timmerman could be seen lying on a mattress under a blanket in what appeared to be a private house. A group of men in the video said he was being treated well and would be safely returned home. The Biden administration is working to bring Timmerman home, Secretary of State Antony Blinken told reporters in Aqaba, Jordan, without offering details, citing privacy. Timmerman later gave an interview with the Al-Arabiya TV network, saying he had illegally crossed into Syria on foot from the eastern Lebanese town of Zahle seven months ago, before being detained. He said he was treated well in detention but could hear other men being tortured. AQABA, Jordan — U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken has arrived in Jordan on his 12th visit to the Mideast since the Israel-Hamas war erupted last year and his first since the weekend ouster of Syrian President Bashar Assad that has sparked new fears of instability in a region wracked by three conflicts despite a ceasefire agreement in Lebanon. Blinken was meeting in Aqaba with Jordan’s King Abdullah II and Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi on Thursday before traveling to Turkey for talks with Turkish officials on Friday. The meetings will focus largely on Syria but also touch on long-elusive hopes for a deal to end the fighting in Gaza that has devastated the Palestinian territory since October 2023. Blinken is the latest senior U.S. official to visit the Middle East in the five days since Assad was deposed as the Biden administration navigates more volatility in the region in its last few weeks in office and as President-elect Donald Trump has said the U.S. should stay out of the Syrian conflict. Other include national security adviser Jake Sullivan and a top military commander who traveled there as the U.S. and Israel have launched airstrikes to prevent the Islamic State militant group from reconstituting and prevent materiel and suspected chemical weapons stocks from falling into militant hands. Blinken “will discuss the need for the transition process and new government in Syria to respect the rights of minorities, facilitate the flow of humanitarian assistance, prevent Syria from being used as a base of terrorism or posing a threat to its neighbors, and ensure that chemical weapons stockpiles are secured and safely destroyed,” the State Department said. The U.S. would be willing to recognize and fully support a new Syrian government that met those criteria. U.S. officials say they are not actively reviewing the foreign terrorist organization designation of the main Syrian rebel group, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, known as HTS, which was once an al-Qaida affiliate, but stressed they are not barred from speaking to its members. JERUSALEM — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says Israeli forces will remain in a Syrian buffer zone until a new force on the other side of the border can guarantee security. After the overthrow of Syrian President Bashar Assad, Israeli forces pushed into a buffer zone that had been established after the 1973 Mideast war. The military says it has seized additional strategic points nearby. Israeli officials have said the move is temporary, but Netanyahu’s conditions could take months or even years to fulfill as Syria charts its post-Assad future, raising the prospect of an open-ended Israeli presence in the country. Netanyahu’s office said in a statement Thursday that Assad’s overthrow by jihadi rebels created a vacuum on the border. “Israel will not permit jihadi groups to fill that vacuum and threaten Israeli communities on the Golan Heights with October 7th style attacks,” it said, referring to Hamas’ 2023 attack out of Gaza, which ignited the war there. “That is why Israeli forces entered the buffer zone and took control of strategic sites near Israel’s border.” The statement added that “this deployment is temporary until a force that is committed to the 1974 agreement can be established and security on our border can be guaranteed.” The buffer zone is adjacent to the Golan Heights, which Israel captured from Syria in the 1967 Mideast war and later annexed. The international community, except for the United States, views the Golan as occupied Syrian territory. JERUSALEM — Israel’s military said Thursday that the attacker who fatally shot a 12-year-old Israeli boy in the occupied West Bank overnight turned himself in to authorities. The attacker opened fire on a bus near the Israeli settlement of Beitar Illit, critically wounding the boy, who hospital authorities pronounced dead in the early morning. Three others were wounded in the attack, paramedics said. The shooting took place just outside Jerusalem in an area near major Israeli settlements. JAKARTA, Indonesia — The Indonesian government has evacuated 37 citizens from Syria following the fall of the Bashar al-Assad government, officials said Thursday. The evacuees were taken by land from Damascus to Beirut, where they boarded three commercial flights to Jakarta, said Judha Nugraha, director of citizen protection at the Foreign Affairs Ministry. The Indonesian Embassy in Damascus said all 1,162 Indonesian citizens in Syria were safe. Indonesian Ambassador to Syria Wajid Fauzi said the situation in Syria has gradually returned to normal. “I can say that 98% of people’s lives are back to normal, shops are open, public transportation has started running,” Fauzi said, adding that most Indonesian nationals living in Syria had chosen to stay. DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip — Palestinian medical officials say Israeli airstrikes have killed at least 28 people in the Gaza Strip, including seven children and a woman. One of the strikes overnight and into Thursday flattened a house in the built-up Nuseirat refugee camp, according to the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in the nearby city of Deir al-Balah, where the casualties were taken. An Associated Press reporter saw the bodies at the hospital’s morgue. Two other strikes killed 15 men who were part of local committees established to secure aid convoys . The committees were set up by displaced Palestinians in coordination with the Hamas-run Interior Ministry. The Nasser Hospital in the southern city of Khan Younis received the bodies and an AP reporter counted them. The hospital said eight were killed in a strike near the southern border town of Rafah and seven others in a strike 30 minutes later near Khan Younis. The war in Gaza began when Hamas-led militants attacked southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducting around 250 people. Some 100 hostages are still inside Gaza, at least a third of whom are believed to be dead. Israel’s offensive has killed over 44,800 Palestinians in Gaza, more than half of them women and children, according to the Gaza Health Ministry, which does not say how many were combatants. The Israeli military says it has killed over 17,000 militants, without providing evidence. The fighting has plunged Gaza into a severe humanitarian crisis, with experts warning of famine. Israel says it allows enough aid to enter and blames U.N. agencies for not distributing it. The U.N. says Israeli restrictions, and the breakdown of law and order after Israel repeatedly targeted the Hamas-run police force, make it extremely difficult to operate in the territory. UNITED NATIONS — The U.N. General Assembly overwhelmingly approved resolutions Wednesday demanding an immediate ceasefire in Gaza and backing the U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees that Israel has moved to ban . The votes in the 193-nation world body were 158-9 with 13 abstentions to demand a ceasefire now and 159-9 with 11 abstentions to support the agency known as UNRWA. The votes culminated two days of speeches overwhelmingly calling for an end to the 14-month war between Israel and the militant Hamas group . General Assembly resolutions are not legally binding, though they reflect world opinion. There are no vetoes in the assembly. Israel and its close ally, the United States, were in a tiny minority speaking and voting against the resolutions.
Maple Syrup Diplomacy: Canada’s Sweet Revenge for Trump’s Tariff TantrumThe minister of the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA), Nyesom Wike, has said his administration committed a total sum of $1,045,176,470 billion, approximately N177billion for the development of infrastructure in the education sector. This, he said, was inclusive of the N3,500,000,000.00 billion counterpart funding from Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC), bringing the total commitment of infrastructural development to approximately N177,,000,000,000.00 billion. The minister stated this at the sixth International Conference on Learning Cities held in Jubail Industrial City, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The minister who was represented by the Minister of State FCT, Dr. Mariya Mahmoud, also noted that Abuja’s annual budget for the development of education has surpassed the UNESCO benchmark of 26 per cent. Highlighting further the total investment in different sectors of education, Wike said a total of 21 primary and junior secondary schools were renovated while a total of 30 senior secondary schools were also established. Other area of infrastructural investment according to the minister include the tertiary education sector, adding that the FCT Administration has committed the sum of N14,529,622,993 billion for the completion and launch of FCT University, Abaji. He said: “UNESCO generally recommends that member nations have a budgetary allocation benchmark of at least 26 per cent to education. “This benchmark is intended to ensure that countries can adequately address needs of their education system such as teachers, training, infrastructure development and educational technology. “It might interest my audience to know that Abuja’s annual budget for education surpasses the UNESCO benchmark.” Wike, reiterated that the city under his watch has invested heavily in the training and retraining of teachers and educational infrastructure in the six area councils of the territory. He affirmed that the administration has maintained a total commitment to the Abuja Learning City status as emphasised by UNESCO, adding that Abuja city has adopted a “whole school” approach system that promotes peace, security, and tolerance through knowledge, skills and global awareness.Alex Berenguer prodded the hosts ahead after 53 minutes before Mbappe – who failed to convert a Champions League penalty against Liverpool last week – sent his kick too close to Bilbao goalkeeper Julen Agirrezabala. Jude Bellingham appeared to have rescued a point for Real after scoring for the fourth successive league game 12 minutes from time. But Federico Valverde’s mistake two minutes later gifted Gorka Guruzeta the winner in front of a delirious San Mames crowd. On a busy night of second-round Copa del Rey action, Villarreal suffered a shock 1-0 defeat at Pontevedra while there were wins for Real Betis, Rayo Vallecano and Valencia. Fiorentina went out of the Coppa Italia to Empoli on penalties on an emotional night at Stadio Artemio Franchi. Viola were back in action after Edoardo Bove’s health scare forced their weekend league fixture with Inter Milan to be abandoned during the first half. Midfielder Bove collapsed on the pitch and required emergency medical treatment. He was taken to hospital but regained consciousness in intensive care. Empoli led at half-time through Emmanuel Ekong’s fourth-minute opener before Moise Kean and Riccardo Sottil put Fiorentina ahead. Sebastiano Esposito struck 15 minutes from time to make it 2-2 and take the last-16 tie into extra time, Empoli eventually winning 4-3 on penalties. Benjamin Sesko opened the scoring and Luis Openda struck twice as RB Leipzig brushed aside Eintracht Frankfurt 3-0 in the German DFB Pokal. Second-half goals from Denis Vavro, Jonas Wind and Yannick Gerhardt saw Wolfsburg beat Hoffenheim 3-0. Cologne knocked out Hertha Berlin 2-1 after extra time with Dejan Ljubicic converting a penalty in the final seconds, while Augsburg prevailed 5-4 on penalties against Karlsruhe after a 2-2 draw.Fulgent Genetics chief scientific officer sells $26,773 in stock
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Demonstrating long-term commitment to sharing the success of U. S. Steel with the employees TOKYO , Dec. 10, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Nippon Steel Corporation ("Nippon Steel") (TSE: 5401) announced today a commitment to reward United States Steel Corporation ("U. S. Steel") employees in the United States with a Closing Bonus of $5,000 , less applicable withholdings and authorized or required deductions, following the closing of the transaction between the parties. Eligible non-union employees in the United States below the Senior Manager level will receive this Closing Bonus. Nippon Steel has offered this same Closing Bonus to union-represented employees in the United States via their applicable union representatives. If any of the unions that represent U. S. Steel employees have questions regarding the bonus, Nippon Steel is willing to discuss the matter with them. Commenting on the commitment, Takahiro Mori , Representative Director and Vice Chairman of Nippon Steel said, "We have listened to unions and government officials who have argued that, in large corporate transactions, rank-and-file employees often receive nothing that recognizes their contributions to the value generated for stockholders. Through our commitment to this Closing Bonus, we want to address that concern. We want to thank all of U. S. Steel's employees for their continued hard work. Our goal is to protect and grow U. S. Steel, and its people are the most important asset in achieving this goal. We hope that this bonus demonstrates Nippon Steel's long-term commitment to sharing the success of U. S. Steel and providing a more secure future for employees, their families, and communities. After closing, we look forward to working with all stakeholders to grow U. S. Steel into the best steel company in the United States for decades." The Closing Bonus is conditioned upon the transaction closing. Nippon Steel also intends to provide a €3,000 Closing Bonuses to employees in Europe following the close of the transaction. Altogether, the Closing Bonus will result in a nearly $100 million aggregate payment to qualifying employees. About Nippon Steel Nippon Steel is Japan's largest steelmaker and one of the world's leading steel manufacturers. Nippon Steel has a global crude steel production capacity of approximately 66 million tonnes and employs approximately 100,000 people in the world. Nippon Steel's manufacturing base is in Japan and the company has a presence in 15 additional countries including: United States , India , Thailand , Indonesia , Vietnam , Brazil , Mexico , Sweden , China and others. Nippon Steel established a joint venture in the United States around 40 years ago and has focused on building cooperative and good relationships with employees, labor unions, suppliers, customers, and communities. As the 'Best Steelmaker with World-Leading Capabilities,' Nippon Steel pursues world-leading technologies and manufacturing capabilities and contributes to society by providing excellent products and services. For more information, please visit: https://www.nipponsteel.com . SOURCE Nippon Steel CorporationKimberley Curling Club gears up for U18 Provincial Championships
(The Center Square) – Homeowners in the market for washers and dryers may have better-performing options to choose from in the near future due to a bill limiting the extent of energy efficiency mandates on laundry appliances passing the U.S. House. The Republican-led House Resolution 1612 , or Liberty in Laundry Act, would prohibit the Secretary of Energy from enforcing energy conservation standards for clothes washers or dryers that “are not cost-effective or technologically feasible.” Javascript is required for you to be able to read premium content. Please enable it in your browser settings.Article content Our navy is short thousands of sailors and struggling to build new ships, but they are looking after the important stuff – changing the official march song because it’s not woke. Recommended Videos Senior officers at the Royal Canadian Navy have spent four years discussing replacing Heart of Oak as their official march song. The song has been part of the Royal Canadian Navy since its inception, coming from the traditional march song of the Royal Navy in Britain. A briefing note drafted in December 2020 states there are three issues with the lyrics that are contrary to defence policy. Those issues include not being gender inclusive, celebrating a colonial past and a reference to slavery. “Disgusting,” one naval veteran said upon hearing about the attempt to change the song. “It’s all I’ve ever known,” said a still-serving officer who doesn’t support the move. No one should support the move; it’s ridiculous social justice crap not based in reality. Having read the lyrics and listened to the song, the reasons presented in the briefing note show a political agenda at work. “First, the line ‘to add something new to this wonderful year’ references Annus Mirabulis of 1759, various British victories as part of colonial conquests including over the French colony of Canada,” the briefing memo states. The Royal Canadian Navy is worried their march song celebrates a victory of Britain over France? That’s our history, deal with it, and yes, both Britain and France were colonial powers, France lost, move on. Secondly, the briefing note mentions the lyric “not press you like slaves,” which is today sung “as freemen not slaves,” and mentions that the Royal Navy had been involved in the slave trade. The more important thing to note is that no organization on the planet did more to eradicate slavery than the Royal Navy after Britain abolished slavery. The comment is historically ignorant to say the least. “Finally, the lyrics are not inclusive to all genders,” it states. The memo was drafted by Lt. Catherine Norris who is currently the Commanding Officer of the Central Band of the Canadian Armed Forces. Rather than simply delete the memo and the email it came with, officials decided to begin a process that has been going on for four years to find a new march song and throw out something that is part of Canadian naval tradition. “ Heart of Oak is very ingrained in the RCN, unlike a lot of commands/branches/units who couldn’t name or hum their march. However, I think it is worth pointing out the hypocrisy of changing the ranks be more inclusive while continuing to sing a March which isn’t,” wrote Lt. Norris. Seems having lyrics that refer to men and lads, but not to women or the other invented genders, just isn’t acceptable in the navy today. “One of the decisions at Admiral’s Council back in February was to replace Heart of Oak as the RCN march as it fails to meet muster on both GBA+ and Canadian grounds,” Vice Admiral Angus Topshee, the Commander of the Royal Canadian Navy, wrote in July 2022. For those not familiar with the term GBA+, it refers to Gender-based Analysis Plus, which is an official policy and commitment of the Canadian government under Justin Trudeau. “GBA Plus is an intersectional analysis that goes beyond biological (sex) and socio-cultural (gender) differences to consider other factors, such as age, disability, education, ethnicity, economic status, geography (including rurality), language, race, religion, and sexual orientation,” the government’s website states. Is there any military song that would be generic and inoffensive enough for this policy? The other day, Defence Minister Bill Blair said the Canadian Armed Forces as a whole are short 14,000 people. All three branches of the military are having trouble recruiting people join. Going woke and throwing military tradition away isn’t going to help that problem. blilley@postmedia.com
Provides 2000 A15 Hydro Bitcoin mining machines in initial order Continues global expansion with addition of new customer SINGAPORE , Dec. 12, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Canaan Inc. (NASDAQ: CAN) ("Canaan" or the "Company"), a leading high-performance computing solutions provider, today announced that Canaan Creative Global Pte. Ltd. ("CCG"), a wholly owned Singapore subsidiary of the Company, has entered into a purchase agreement with AGM Group Holdings Inc. ("AGMH"), an integrated technology company specializing in fintech software services and production of high-performance hardware and computing equipment, for its Avalon A15 HydU 370T ("A15 Hydro") mining machines. As part of the agreement, Canaan will initially provide 2,000 Bitcoin mining machines to AGMH. The Company has also agreed to provide its customer with an option to acquire approximately 30,000 additional BTC mining units, potentially providing AGMH with a combined power capacity not exceeding 300 megawatts. The Avalon Miner A15 Hydro enhances the miner's performance and lifespan while reducing energy consumption and noise pollution, aligning with Canaan's ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) strategy. About Canaan Inc. Established in 2013, Canaan Inc. (NASDAQ: CAN), is a technology company focusing on ASIC high-performance computing chip design, chip research and development, computing equipment production, and software services. Canaan has extensive experience in chip design and streamlined production in the ASIC field. In 2013, Canaan's founding team shipped to its customers the world's first batch of mining machines incorporating ASIC technology in bitcoin 's history under the brand name Avalon. In 2019, Canaan completed its initial public offering on the Nasdaq Global Market. To learn more about Canaan, please visit https://www.canaan.io/ . Safe Harbor Statement This announcement contains forward−looking statements. These statements are made under the "safe harbor" provisions of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward−looking statements can be identified by terminology such as "will," "expects," "anticipates," "future," "intends," "plans," "believes," "estimates" and similar statements. Among other things, the business outlook and quotations from management in this announcement, as well as Canaan Inc.'s strategic and operational plans, contain forward−looking statements. Canaan Inc. may also make written or oral forward−looking statements in its periodic reports to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") on Forms 20−F and 6−K, in its annual report to shareholders, in press releases and other written materials and in oral statements made by its officers, directors or employees to third parties. Statements that are not historical facts, including statements about Canaan Inc.'s beliefs and expectations, are forward−looking statements. Forward−looking statements involve inherent risks and uncertainties. A number of factors could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in any forward−looking statement, including but not limited to the following: the Company's goals and strategies; the Company's future business development, financial condition and results of operations; the expected growth of the bitcoin industry and the price of bitcoin ; the Company's expectations regarding demand for and market acceptance of its products, especially its bitcoin mining machines; the Company's expectations regarding maintaining and strengthening its relationships with production partners and customers; the Company's investment plans and strategies, fluctuations in the Company's quarterly operating results; competition in its industry; and relevant government policies and regulations relating to the Company and cryptocurrency . Further information regarding these and other risks is included in the Company's filings with the SEC. All information provided in this press release and in the attachments is as of the date of this press release, and Canaan Inc. does not undertake any obligation to update any forward−looking statement, except as required under applicable law. Investor Relations Contacts Canaan Inc. Xi Zhang Email: IR@canaan-creative.com ICR, LLC. Robin Yang Tel: +1 (347) 396-3281 Email: canaan.ir@icrinc.com View original content: https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/canaan-inc-signs-agreement-with-agm-group-holdings-inc-302330362.html SOURCE Canaan Inc.
SARGODHA, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 29th Dec, 2024) The of new and used warm clothes has significantly increased in and its tehsils, including , , , , and Kotmomin. Various winter essentials, such as gloves, woolen hats, mufflers, pullovers, sweatshirts, and jackets, are prominently displayed outside shops and on stalls in different localities. Markets and weekly bazaars are bustling with crowds of shoppers bargaining with retailers. In addition to clothing, heaps of quilts, bed covers, blankets, and rugs are also available for . The sudden onset of chilly , particularly during the night over the past 10 days, has compelled people to stock up on winter apparel and other necessities. Used winter items, including quilts and blankets, are a popular choice for budget-conscious buyers. A local visitor, Ghulam Rasool, commented, "Although the is taking steps to curb inflation and provide relief to the , a nearly 20pc increase in the of winter clothing compared to last year has been observed." Vendors and shopkeepers are experiencing a surge in , with winter apparel selling rapidly. “Our is thriving these days as the demand for warm clothes has skyrocketed,” said Suleman Ahmed, a second-hand clothing dealer at Shaheen Chowk Bazaar. Another dealer on Station expressed similar sentiments, stating, "Our sales have doubled, and we anticipate further growth in the coming days." Shoppers are becoming increasingly selective, focusing on quality and affordability when purchasing used clothing. “Customers not only look for the quality but also aim to get items at the lowest possible prices,” said Ali Ahmed, a shop owner at Al Munir in . He noted that international brands are particularly popular among buyers, with many seeking slightly used items renowned labels. Traders typically purchase second-hand clothing in bulk, sorted by categories for men, , and children. “Some customers have a keen eye for quality products, picking them out like hawks heaps of used clothing,” Ali Ahmed explained. “Even at fixed-price shops, bargaining is common, as people strive to find affordable yet durable options.” As the cold persists, bazaars across are teeming with shoppers searching for practical and budget-friendly winter essentials, signaling a profitable season for vendors and stall-holders.NoneLeBron James and Steph Curry return in the 'Jingle Hoops Regifted' with epic animation for Christmas Day games
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