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Erdoğan: The master haggler of world politics

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 16:00:00 GMT

Only Hungary’s Viktor Orbán comes anywhere near to exasperating Western allies as much as Turkey’s Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.Anyone reckoning on longevity in office diminishing the Turkish president’s skillful unpredictability would have been disabused by his tour de force at NATO’s annual summit in Vilnius this week. Erdoğan jolted Western allies — and Vladimir Putin — with his outspoken support for Ukraine’s bid to join the 31-nation military bloc, saying the war-torn country “deserves NATO membership.” He followed that quickly by adding a new, impossible condition on dropping his veto on Sweden joining NATO: that the European Union must first advance Turkey’s long-stalled bid to be admitted. It looked like the summit would be totally sidetracked from its planned focus on Ukraine. “Nobody should expect compromise nor understanding from me,” Erdoğan declared as he set off for Lithuania.  And then suddenly he pirouetted. After hours of frenetic diplomacy, the Turkish ...

Italy warned of dead children on migrant ship hours before it capsized

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 16:00:00 GMT

Early on the morning of the Adriana’s final day at sea, the Italian authorities sent a troubling warning to their EU and Greek colleagues: Two children had died aboard the overloaded migrant boat. The alert was sent at 8:01 a.m. UTC, just over an hour after the Italians initially spotted the vessel at 6:51 a.m., an investigation by Welt am Sonntag and POLITICO found. The ship would later stall out in the ocean and capsize that night, killing hundreds of migrants on board.The new details are revealed in an internal document at the EU border agency Frontex and seen by Welt, part of a “serious incident report” Frontex is compiling on the tragedy. The findings raise questions about whether the authorities knew of serious distress on the boat much earlier than they have admitted. The document further complicates the timeline European authorities have given about the boat — Frontex has said its own plane was the first to discover the Adriana at 9:47 a.m., while the Greek governm...

In pictures: Europe swelters as heatwave hits Europe

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 16:00:00 GMT

OPTICSHeatwave in Europe: In picturesManuele Valeri/EFE-EPASouthern Europe could see record-breaking temperatures in the next few days as a heatwave sweeps across much of the continent.Italy, Spain, France, Croatia and Turkey have all been affected by scorching temperatures. The Italian Meteorological Society has named the heatwave “Cerberus” after the three-headed dog that guarded the underworld in Greek mythology.The beginning of July marked the planet’s hottest week in recorded history. Last month was the warmest-ever June, and a study this week found that more than 60,000 Europeans died due to heat last summer.Cooling off at the Ada Ciganlija lake in Belgrade, Serbia | Andrej Cukic/EFE via EPAPeople cool off in a fountain during a hot summer day in Piazza di Spagna in Rome | Fabio Frustaci/EPA-EFEA man cools off in a fountain in Rome | Fabio Frustaci/EPA-EFEPeople cool off in a fountain at the Pantheon in Rome | Fabio Frustaci/EPA-EFE A ...

Tracking weekend storms and flooding potential

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 16:00:00 GMT

Storms rolled through midday and early afternoon Friday bringing torrential rain. Towns in Worcester and Middlesex Counties picked up a quick 1-2″ of rain. The atmosphere is in a bit of a break from storms this evening. You’ll find storm activity along a frontal boundary to our west. How does the weekend look? Saturday will be your better day to target getting outside. Sunday will bring the potential for flooding.The Weather Prediction Center highlights a portion of New England with a moderate risk for excessive rainfall. That means it’s likely there will be numerous flash floods across the region. A cold front will sweep across the state late Sunday. The atmosphere will have a lot of water vapor to tap into (shown below with precipitable water values), which will mean the potential for torrential downpours. This comes after the ground is already saturated from recent rain. A Flood Watch will likely be issued once again Sunday for localized urban and small stream f...

Ryan Downes becomes youngest winner in 115-year history of Mass. Amateur

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 16:00:00 GMT

MANCHESTER-BY-THE-SEA — One year after coming up short in the Massachusetts Amateur final, Longmeadow and GreatHorse’s Ryan Downes wasn’t about to be denied for a second time.Putting on a surgical exhibition of winning golf, the 17-year-old Longmeadow High senior played with experience far beyond his age.Downes played 31 holes in Friday’s championship match against good friend Matt Naumec in 7-under par en route to becoming the youngest winner in the 115-year history of the state’s biggest amateur championship after his 6 & 5 win.Downes eclipses the previous mark of Ted Adams and James Driscoll, who each became amateur champions at age 18.“It really does feel great,” Downes said as the Massachusetts Cup sat at his feet. “Last year, I don’t think my game was as mature as it is now. I learned a lot about being able to hit shots under pressure and that really paid off.”While the score was seemingly lopsided at the end, the match was actually much closer for most of the way.If there...

Man wanted in North End shooting outside Modern Pastry

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 16:00:00 GMT

A foul-mouthed shooting suspect is on the run and wanted by police after he opened fire outside the North End’s iconic Modern Pastry shop leaving a bullet hole in the front window.Patrick Mendoza, 54, is named in police reports as the suspected shooter who allegedly fired at a man who “dove behind a parked vehicle” just outside the popular cannoli cafe escaping injury Wednesday night.“Mendoza should be considered armed and dangerous. Anyone that comes into contact with him should call 911 immediately,” police said.Modern, a tourist and local go-to pastry stop along Hanover Street where it remains locked in perpetual competition with Mike’s Pastry a few busy blocks away, is operating sweetly as usual, they report.The scene was hotter the night in question, around 11 p.m., when the police report a suspect identified as Mendoza fired “three shots” and fled “on a bike with the handgun still in hand towards Cross St.” The police...

Overturned semi-truck carrying oil prompts lane closures on I-15

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 16:00:00 GMT

SAN DIEGO -- A semi-truck carrying oil overturned on Friday afternoon, causing the closure of several lanes on Interstate 15 through Miramar, traffic officials said.Around 4:30 p.m., SkyFOX was over southbound I-15 at Miramar Road, where the truck was seen on its side with oil spillage right beside the vehicle.As of 4:32 p.m., four lanes have been shut down due to the crash, according to Caltrans.Check back for updates on this developing story.

Authorities respond to North Dakota shooting that witness described as man opening fire on police

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 16:00:00 GMT

FARGO, N.D. (AP) — Federal, state and local authorities responded to a shooting Friday in Fargo, North Dakota. and a witness described it as a man opening fire on police.Fargo police termed it a “critical incident,” but provided no details. Surveillance video provided by Fargo resident Allison Carlson captured the rapid sounds of gunfire ringing out over just a few seconds.Chenoa Peterson said she was driving by the scene with her 22-year-old daughter when a man pulled out a gun and began firing at police.“He proceeds to aim it and you just hear the bullets go off, and I’m like ‘Oh my God! He’s shooting!’” she told The Associated Press.Peterson’s first instinct was to pull over and try to help, but her daughter convinced her to leave.“It’s weird knowing that if you were 10 seconds earlier you could have been in that,” she said.North Dakota Attorney General Drew Wrigley said the state Bureau of Criminal Investigation is working with federal, state and local law enforcement in respons...

Emergencies minister mobilizes military to help fight B.C. wildfires

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 16:00:00 GMT

OTTAWA — Emergencies minister Bill Blair says federal assistance including military resources are being mobilized to help British Columbia’s fight against hundreds of wildfires.Blair says he’s approved a request for federal assistance to aid firefighters and emergency management personnel who are “working tirelessly” in B.C.He says in a tweet that the assistance will come from across federal departments and the Canadian Armed Forces.B.C.’s Minister of Emergency Management and Climate Readiness Bowinn Ma said Thursday she had made the request, while Blair said earlier that he expected B.C. to seek “fairly substantive” assistance. Blair said at the time that federal help could include military assistance for airlift evacuations from remote locations, as well as troops trained as firefighters who can “mop up” to keep blazes from reigniting.The BC Wildfire Service says the total number of active fires in the province has topped 360,...

Former Maple Leaf Galchenyuk allegedly used racist slur, intimidated officers: police

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 16:00:00 GMT

Editor’s Note: The following story contains offensive language and views that could be disturbing to some readers.Alex Galchenyuk repeatedly used racial slurs toward a police officer in training and threatened to have two officers killed during a traffic stop last weekend, police said in a report, actions that led the Arizona Coyotes to terminate the player’s contract on Friday.A Scottsdale Police Department report said Galchenyuk was erratic and aggressive toward officers after apparently crashing a car into a sign.Galchenyuk cited connections in Moscow while saying, “I’m gunna chop you, your wife, your daughter” and “One phone call and you’re all dead, your whole family, your bloodline is dead,” police said in the report.Galchenyuk, who was born in the U.S. to Belarusian parents and spent much of his childhood in Russia, uttered a racial slur several times while referring to the officer in training, the report said.The Coyotes termin...