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Global operation takes down dark web drug marketplace

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:41:06 GMT

THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — Law enforcement agencies around the world seized an online marketplace and arrested nearly 300 people allegedly involved in buying and selling drugs, European Union law enforcement agency Europol said Tuesday.The worldwide operation targeting the “Monopoly Market,” coordinated by Europol, is the latest major takedown of sales platforms for drugs and other illicit goods on the so-called dark web, a part of the internet hosted within an encrypted network and accessible only through specialized anonymity-providing tools.“Our coalition of law enforcement authorities across three continents proves that we all do better when we work together,” Europol’s Executive Director, Catherine De Bolle, said in a statement. “This operation sends a strong message to criminals on the dark web: International law enforcement has the means and the ability to identify and hold you accountable for your illegal activities, even on the dark web.” Europol said that 288 suspects w...

Emirates suggest more airline alliances possible for carrier

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:41:06 GMT

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — The president of long-haul carrier Emirates suggested on Tuesday that it could reach deals with more firms to share routes after the start of a similar arrangement with U.S.-based United Airlines. Tim Clark, who joined the airline in 1985 when it was first launched, also suggests Emirates remains ready for expansion as the carrier again takes flight following the grounding during the height of the coronavirus pandemic. Speaking to journalists at the Arabian Travel Market in Dubai, Clark said that the United deal — as well as one with Air Canada — showed that carriers were no longer just looking at Emirates as a “dastardly competitor.” U.S. airlines had complained for years about unequal competition from Mideast carriers, describing them as receiving unfair government subsidies to operate. Emirates, though owned by Dubai’s hereditarily ruled government, always denied having an unfair advantage. United had been one of the American firms challen...

Russian fashion designer Valentin Yudashkin dies at age 59

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:41:06 GMT

MOSCOW (AP) — Russian couturier Valentin Yudashkin, whose designs drew eyes at international fashion shows, sports events and military ceremonies, has died at age 59, Russian news reports said Tuesday.The reports cited his wife, Marina, as confirming his death but did not state a cause. Yudashkin was diagnosed with kidney cancer in 2016 and reportedly was hospitalized last week.News of his death came two days after Russian media reported that Yudashkin’s mentor and the Soviet Union’s most renowned fashion designer, Vyacheslav Zaitsev, had died. Yudashkin attracted attention with highly dramatic fashions and began showing at events in Paris and elsewhere. His intricate, embellished designs were a sharp departure from the dull, Soviet monoliths of Odintsovo, the city on the outskirts of Moscow where he was born. As acclaim for his work grew, Yudashkin was commissioned to design the Russian Olympic team’s uniforms for the 1994 Winter Games and 1996 Summer Games. He la...

Crowds of those seeking rescue swell at Sudan’s main seaport

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:41:06 GMT

CAIRO (AP) — Exhausted Sudanese and foreigners joined growing crowds at Sudan’s main seaport Tuesday, waiting to be evacuated from the chaos-stricken nation after more than two weeks of fighting increasingly turned the capital of Khartoum into a ghost town.Others packed buses and trucks heading to Sudan’s northern border with Egypt.Since fighting erupted April 15, fierce clashes have taken place in residential areas of Khartoum and the neighboring city of Omdurman, just across the Nile. The sounds of gunfire and explosions were heard again Tuesday.“Much of the capital has become empty,” said Abdalla al-Fatih, a Khartoum resident. He said everyone in his street has left.The battle for control of Sudan erupted after months of escalating tensions between the military, led by Gen. Abdel-Fattah Burhan, and a rival paramilitary group called the Rapid Support Forces, commanded by Gen. Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo.Al-Fatih’s family managed to get out of Khartoum over the weekend after ...

HBCUs get donations 178 times lower than Ivy League: study

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:41:06 GMT

The average historically Black college and university received 178 times less funding from foundations than the average Ivy League school in 2019, according to a new report on the underfunding of HBCUs released Tuesday.The study — conducted by the philanthropic research group Candid and ABFE, a nonprofit that advocates for investments in Black communities – found that the eight Ivy League schools received $5.5 billion from foundations compared to $45 million for the 99 HBCUs in 2019. Between 2002 and 2019, foundation support of HBCUs declined 30%, even before inflation is taken into account.“We were not surprised by the findings because philanthropy generally funds Black-led nonprofit organizations disproportionately less than other similarly situated organizations,” said Susan Taylor Batten, ABFE’s president and CEO. “However, we were surprised by the data that indicated the enormity of the disparate funding between Ivy League colleges and HBCUs.”Some study participants blame...

Scooby doobie don't: Discarded joints pose hazards for dogs

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:41:06 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — Bondi, an 8-month-old toy poodle, had just returned from a walk when he began stumbling. His head wobbled and soon he could barely stand, so his owner, Colleen Briggs, rushed him to the vet.The good doctor quickly made a diagnosis: Bondi was stoned.On his walk, a sniff must have led Bondi to a discarded joint, which he ate.“He was just doing his usual — exploring everything, sniffing everything,” said Briggs, who began to notice the pot shops sprouting up around New York City, the frequent whiffs of marijuana while circling her Manhattan neighborhood and the unfinished joints now littering sidewalks.In places like New York City, where the first legal recreational pot dispensary opened last year, users can smoke it in the open. As a result, more dogs are coming across — and eating — discarded joints and edibles, prompting alarm among veterinarians and pet owners who blame the steep rise in poisonings on smokers oblivious to the harm they can do by littering.Marijuana ...

We're celebrating a special birthday! Lou Manfredini's! Oh.. and Larry's too

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:41:06 GMT

It's a special day around here. It's Lou Manfredini's birthday! Happy Birthday Lou! Oh… and Larry too.Paul gifted Larry with a last minute, yet no-less-thoughtful gift, Tom Skilling's wallet.Love the WGN Morning News? We love you, too. And you can have all the hijinks delivered to your inbox every weekday morning. Sign up and subscribe to our WGN Morning News newsletter.

Keanu Reeves' band teases a comeback

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:41:06 GMT

(WHNT) — For anyone listening to alternative rock in the 90s and early 2000s era, you might be familiar with a little-known band called Dogstar. No? Does Keanu Reeves ring a bell?After a 20-year hiatus, the band teased its return in recent social media posts, saying, "Exciting news coming soon. Thanks for being so patient," and sharing a picture of the three original bandmates posing for a photoshoot. Aerosmith announces final farewell tour starting in September The band's Instagram page touts a following just shy of 38K, with a bio that reads, "Dogstar is back." As they replied to ecstatic fans, they wrote, "We will be rolling out some new music this summer, followed by some gigs. As soon as it’s all figured out we will let everyone know immediately."Dogstar also has an active Facebook presence, and yes, even Myspace.Shortly after the release of "Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure," Reeves formed the band with Robert Mailhouse after a chance encounter at a supermarket in 1991. ...

Woman misses transplant appointment after bus never arrives

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:41:06 GMT

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (WDAF) – Tearia Meek’s suitcase is still packed and sitting in her living room. The Greyhound bus tag is still attached.“We were supposed to go from Kansas City to St. Louis,” said Meeks, who had been traveling with her mother.From St. Louis, multiple other buses would eventually take them to the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesotta, where Meek hoped to be approved for a double transplant of her kidneys and her lungs.She’s only 30, but she has been on dialysis for 13 years. She relies on a steady stream of medication and oxygen to stay alive. She was hopeful that the transplant would be her shot at a normal life.But she never made it to the Mayo Clinic. That’s because the Greyhound that was supposed to take her there never came. Instead, on Feb. 4, Meek and her mom found themselves stuck at the Greyhound station in St. Louis for more than 12 hours.   First Republic Bank collapse spurs fears for banking system, broader economy “The bus was supposed to leave at...

Texas-themed World's Largest Book heads to Capitol

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:41:06 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) -- The Guinness World Record holder for the "largest published book in the world" will make an appearance at the Texas State Capitol Tuesday morning. The seven-foot-tall book, "I Am Texas," includes stories, poetry and artwork from more than 1,000 young Texans on what the state means to them. Students featured in the piece come from grades 3-12 and more than 80 school districts statewide, per a news release.The book was officially dubbed the largest in the world in Houston late last year. State Sen. Mayes Middleton will host a press conference on the Capitol steps at 10 a.m. Tuesday, joined by Austin-area student authors, their families and representatives from Galveston's Bryan Museum. The seven-foot-tall book, "I Am Texas," includes stories, poetry and artwork from more than 1,000 young Texans on what the state means to them. (Courtesy: The Bryan Museum, iWRITE Organization, McCoy's Building Supply)The seven-foot-tall book, "I Am Texas," includes stories, poetry and ...